Seraphina's Song
by victorianchic105
Summary: Continued years after Nephilim Child.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own Fang or Seth. Fang belongs to James Patterson. And Seth belongs to Stephenie Meyer.**

**Please tell me what you think and where you'd like this story to go. I have the first four chapters already written. Reviews give me inspiration!**

Seraphina's Song

I don't remember much before the dark times. That's what I call the last sixteen years of my life anyway. My father tells me I was mischievous, in a good way; that I could make the coldest person smile warmly when they watched me tumble, dance, and flit around. But I can't ever remember being happy. I blame most of my misfortune and unhappiness on the monsters who killed my mother. The rest I blame on my father.

It was him who taught me how to hate them, to trust no one, to fight both honorably and dirty, to slip through the shadows like I was part of them. He also taught me the most important rule: never kill unless you have no other choice.

It was a little ironic. He wanted revenge for taking away the one and only person he could ever love and enjoy the world with and yet he wouldn't end their lives. He would only make them miserable. Whenever they found us, we would always leave them wounded or unconscious. And when we found them, we would leave them broken.

I would linger sometimes before spreading my midnight black wings, wondering why my father refused to end his pain and therefore my suffering. I could never bring myself to leave him, and so I was stuck following his plans for revenge.

Because I may not remember the times when I could dance barefoot in the rain without a care in the world, but I do remember the exact moment it ended.

_I had listened to the dead silence after that fatal explosion and with growing panic crept out of my hiding place to find the one I desperately needed to see in one piece. I had stumbled my way through bodies strewn across our backyard and the next thing I knew I had found my way to her. I sat on the bloodied grass and held her hand until my father arrived, numb with disbelief with what was happening around me on one of the rare and sun shiny days._

_It was the sound that made me realize he had finally come back. The sound that had haunted my dreams and nightmares ever since. My father was clutching her in a grip like that of a drowning man making that sound as if he were screaming 'NO' and whispering 'please' at the same time. The moan it brought made me shake with suppressed tears. He had sounded so broken and lost that my once happy world decided to shatter so completely that I would never find the pieces to put it back together again._

We never went back there, wherever that place was. Like I said, I couldn't remember much.

I was currently sitting crouched at the top of a building over looking the city night life. I had turned eighteen today and was planning on marking the occasion my own way.

My father was at the ranch we owned in Minnesota for the weekend meeting with a contact in the new organization tomorrow. I didn't mind being here alone. What I did mind, was being left out of the action. I knew if our contact had solid information that my father would infiltrate one of the organizations without me—again.

I guess my father liked to be alone these days, too. But he needed someone to watch his back from time to time.

I stood up, determined to leave all thoughts of loneliness behind and stepped off the edge. There was an abandoned construction site on one side and I used the area as cover for the stunts I liked to pull. I didn't need my wings for this maneuver. Like most mutant hybrids, I had a 'super' power. Psychokinesis. The ability to move things with my mind.

I slowed the speed of my fall by concentrating and pushing the air up beneath me. Enough so, that I landed with barely a sound and headed off in the direction of the night club I went to on occasion. The crowd never had anyone over twenty-one since the owner, Angel Michaels, banned any alcoholic beverages from his place.

That's why I liked going to Angel's, which also happened to be the name of the place. And yes, I realize the irony in that too. It wasn't a place where druggies and creeps were allowed but a place, more like a safe haven, for kids who just needed to get away for awhile.

I want to get one thing straight first. My father and I are not on the run like my mother and he were before. We're more like hunters, of the monster type. Zachary had created enough followers to create organizations close enough to that of the mafia type. Except these monsters could actually become the real creepy crawlies children imagined in their nightmares.

The scientists who created the experiments before are all gone, but their notes and samples still remain and Zachary's been able to successfully make more genetic hybrids. Not to mention get himself involved in drug running, slave trafficking, and mercenary work of the assassination variety.

My father and I are working to stop him. And we're not alone. We have contacts, both friendly and those bribed—hybrids that we've helped release and create lives for themselves. We even have a couple of feds on our side.

It's like an underground revolution working to bring down the monsters that no one else can see. It got frustrating at times when we spent months tracking a target to have them disappear, but other than that it was worth it. We've saved so many lives that would have been tortured and killed. But I couldn't help thinking if this job was worth entire life.

It's not like I needed schooling, I'm smart just like my parents. Well, smart enough. And we get enough money coming in that I don't need a day job to keep us fed. Don't ask me how we get it, just know that it's for a good cause. Denial works wonders for me sometimes. But I lived from one job to the next and I trusted only three people.

Walking down the empty back streets of a city is calming sometimes. I get to watch the steam rise out of the gutters, listen to the distant traffic, and feel the night air reassure me that I could take on any idiot who thought he could get some kicks messing with some teenage girl. But it seemed tonight would be different and knew the second my phone rang that my fun happy birthday evening wasn't going to happen.

Sighing in resignation, I stopped and stepped into the entranceway of an alley.

"Seraphina Ride, psychic bird kid who just lost her night of dancing euphorically." Well wasn't I in a good mood. Not.

"Take your attitude out on the dogs. We've got movement at ground 2." A deep voice ordered.

"Rescue mission?" Immediately sobering, I switched from passive rebel to active soldier in a heartbeat.

"Make sure you're dressed. Lily and Tyler are coming too."

"Ten minutes, Seth."

"You've got seven." Click.

I grinned as I started running, knowing they wouldn't dare make a move without me if they could help it. I was the best of the four of us in a fight (my father didn't count).

Seth was one of my dad's friends who followed us wherever we went, giving us help where we needed it. He was like me in the way that he was born from two hybrids. At least, I've never been corrected, but I knew he didn't grow up in a cage. He was so different from the genetic wolves that he seemed like a completely different species. Like he was a true wolf.

I kept a quick pace in the direction of the site where information had led us to believe the organization was holding slaves and experiments until they needed to use them, for whatever reason.

A rescue mission meant allowing our presence in the city to finally be known by kicking some dog hindes and busting out the intended prisoner.

If there was movement noted, then either a slave was about to become dog meat or an experiment was going to be terminated. Either way the intended end wasn't going to be so bright for the victim.

I quickly used the changing room in one of the open shopping outlets. I slipped out of my rockin' dance outfit and into some black boots, black jeans, a black long sleeved shirt, and black gloves with a black hood. My eyes didn't even show. All in all I looked like the stereotypical ninja.

You really have to hand it to those guys, they certainly knew how to make themselves invisible at night, not to mention hide their identities well.

I slipped out the back so as not to attract attention and took off from the darkened ally into the night sky.

Ground 2 was three 'abandoned' buildings on the outskirts of town. A twelve-foot barbed wire fence bordered the surrounding area with some shrub climbing on parts to keep up appearance of disuse. But surveillance had caught motorcades coming and going at random intervals so we were positive someone was being held there.

We were also positive that they didn't use any cameras for security; only those mutant dogs to patrol every once in a while. Sort of arrogant of them, actually.

I landed on the building's roof adjacent to our mark with nothing but a whisper as I tucked my wings back in. Two figures were crouched at the edge keeping watch and I silently joined them.

Lily was only thirteen with hair as pale gold as the first light of the sun and eyes to match. She was the most recent addition to our little family and the most protected. She hated fighting, or any confrontation for that matter, but she was useful when it came to gathering information and assessing a situation. She could tell if someone was lying or not, if someone was going to turn right or left, if a bomb would go off before we opened a door. It wasn't exactly mind reading or visions. In fact, we didn't really know how her power worked but she's saved our lives in the past, so we didn't pester her about it.

She gave a slight nod of her head and handed me an earpiece out of her pocket. Her hands were small, just like the rest of her, and so pale that she almost glowed in the dark. I tapped them and she gave a sheepish smile before slipping her gloves and hood on.

Tyler sat next to her, steadily watching the doors two stories below. He was fifteen and the closest thing Lily had to a big brother. His disheveled brown hair had fallen across his ice blue eyes again.

It seemed to suit his power well. He could cool the water in the air to a point where he could actually create solid ice. Like that X-men kid, except he didn't need to hold out his hand and concentrate hard at all. When we had rescued Lily, he was the one to carry her all the way home. I guess his protective instincts toward her started then. He's never really left her side since.

It was only five minutes of motionless boredom until Seth's voice came over the earpiece. I thought it was kinda cool having someone talk in your head, but I thought all things out of the norm were awesome.

"Everyone ready?" Seth asked.

"Ready, waiting, and yet waiting some more. Be there in seven minutes." I softly mocked, allowing the mike on my neck to pick up the sound.

"Yeah, but you're not late now are you?" Before I could come up with yet another comeback, which I'm sure would have been fabulously inappropriate, he cut me off, "I'm going to trip the alarm, when the guards look like they're all out, make your move. You're going to have _seconds_, Sera, before they realize what's happened and lock the place down. Two minutes, and then I want everyone fifty yards from here, got it?"

"Affirmative," Lily replied quickly.

"Got it, Boss." Tyler, suck up.

"Two minutes? Last time it was three?!" How does he expect me to get in there and rescue someone and be gone in two minutes?!

"If you can't do it, then I will," Seth said in that infuriatingly smug voice of his.

Gritting my teeth, I told him what he could do with that attitude of his and proceeded to jump the roof of the building we had been watching and ran for the nearest skylight. He never did say anything about going through the front door, I thought with a grin.

Seconds later a shrill alarm pierced the air and dogs were busting out of rooms and out the doors looking around for the source of invasion. I jumped forward and inevitably crashed through the glass, landing and taking off at a run down the hall and around the corner before the showering glass could finish making a racket against the floor.

The buildings were easy enough to figure out, which we had done previously, and I made my way to the cage sitting in the middle of an inner room in no time at all. There was always one in every building. I guess the organization didn't want a revolt or something to break out and overpower their guards, which goes to say how horribly easy they could be to take down if you weren't alone.

I expected the figure to be small and huddled to one side in fright, or unconscious. The boy was neither. He sat looking ready to spring with alert and lucid eyes flickering back and forth. I didn't have time to think about it as I ran up to the front where he could see me. I inspected the lock and decided I didn't have time to get the picks out of my pocket.

I closed my eyes and put my hand over the lock. I could see the inside mechanism in my head. Not a clear picture but like a presence, like I became part of the lock for one moment and saw the key. It snapped into place and I quickly pulled the door open.

Fatigue washed over me and left me staggering as I went to get up and out of the boy's way. Using my 'gift' on industrial things versus natural forces always seemed to take more energy out of me.

The wave of dizziness passed quickly and I straightened up, only to be met with the deepest green eyes I had ever seen. They were almost like emeralds. What I took at first to be a boy turned out to actually be a young man. A little older than me, actually.

I took a step back in surprise and trepidation. He was taller and bigger than I was. His hair was black and it fell into his eyes slightly. His skin was a caramel brown but it looked smooth enough to be marble.

But it was the way he held himself that sent my heart racing. It was like the way a predator would stand, still as stone in that last second before it would move lightning fast and have its prey with a broken neck in its mouth the next.

I didn't move. Some part of by brain was telling me to make a break for it, fight my way past him, but it wasn't loud enough and the other part was saying if you don't move he won't get you.

But it didn't last. Seth's voice came loud and urgent out of the earpiece and in the silence of our frozen moment his voice could be heard throughout the room.

"Styx! Styx, where the hell are you? Get out of there! Get out of there, NOW! They've got Trackers!"

The mention of Trackers sent my head turning toward the entrance in more fear than I had felt a moment before. I had only encountered a Tracker once and I never wanted to repeat that experience.

The second I took my eyes off of _him_ though, I found myself pinned to the wall behind me and then he spoke.

"If you think I'm going to fall for this trick, too, then I'm afraid you're going to be disappointed. Now, you have two seconds before I break your neck," see I told you, "to answer my questions. Who are you?"

I didn't waste any time, I knew Seth would be able to hear me and come back no matter what the situation, but my anger had been rekindled and this guy was seriously starting to tick me off.

"Styx and I have no idea what you're talking about. We came here to break you out and if you don't let me go I'm gonna have to break your pretty nose. And then we're gonna have to start running before we get the wonderful chance to die very slowly." I said quite sweetly.

He looked at me then and I think my sarcastic hysteria allowed him to catch on to the fact that I wasn't the danger waiting to torture him.

He let me go and stepped back. But only a step. I kept myself pressed against the wall and looked at him warily before talking again.

"Boss, we're moving out, turn back. I'm not in danger anymore, _turn back_!" I bit out.

"You're not even out of the building yet!" He was angry but I could hear the hint of desperate worry in his voice.

"Just get to Ice and Petals. They're going to need you." I turned the mike and earpiece off. We never used our names during a mission. Less chance of Zachary finding out which part of the world we were staying in.

Emerald eyes watched me curiously.

"All right, we're gonna have to move fast. Follow me." And I took off without waiting to see if he would follow or not. Honestly, if the guy was gonna be so rude to his rescuers he could stay and get eaten for all I cared.

**Soooo! What did you think? Please, you don't even have to type an entire sentence, just say good or bad. Although, sentences are preferred.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Come on people, I need criticism. Tell me what I can do to make this story better for you guys.**

**Disclaimer: Fang belongs to James Patterson and Seth belongs to Stephenie Meyer.**

Seraphina's Song continued

I got out of the building just in time to enter the small, yet terrifying, fray outside the doors. Tyler was currently pitched against two Erasers while protecting a cowering Lily behind him. She was clutching her head with her eyes squeezed shut. Seth was in wolf form taking out the rest of the guard left and right. I rushed to help Tyler get a chance to freeze the dogs; Seth could take care of himself.

I did a roundhouse kick to the back of one of their heads and proceeded to grab the other around the neck, pulling him away from Lily just in time. Tyler didn't have time to freeze their entire bodies so he just went for their legs. That taken care of, he swooped Lily in his arms and took off into the shadows while I kept any other Erasers from following them.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the guy from the cage doing some pretty good damage himself. He fought like a dancer, which really didn't make sense in my mind but it fit him.

I heard Seth bark in my direction and took that as my cue to go. I spared one last glance at him and in that second saw two Trackers come around the far building. My blood froze and I screamed at Seth to get out of there. He nodded and went towards the outskirts and open fields as fast as a bullet.

I took off across the open field toward the wire fence. I heard faint steps behind me and figured the guy wanted out of there after all.

I skidded to a stop and put my back to the fence, interlocking my fingers and turning my hands up so they made a sort of step.

"Alright, get a running start and then I'll propel you over." I told him.

He looked at me funny and then completely ignoring me, seemed to concentrate hard on the ground on the other side of the fence. Before I could yell at him to get his act together, he vanished.

I blinked and turned around to see him standing on the other side of the fence. I glared at him before pushing air up under me fast enough to get me up and over before any of the Erasers saw us and decided to give chase.

I let the air go as soon as I was over and landed with a thud.

"See, I can do magic tricks, too," I said sarcastically. He didn't even make a face. Whatever.

I took off running yet again. This time heading toward the city. We made it to a back road in ten minutes and I saw headlights. For the greater good I decided to break a little ethical code of mine and promptly forced the car to a stop. By standing in front of it, _not_ with my powers, and told the guy we were borrowing his car for awhile.

Okay, so I didn't tell him, I knocked him out, but in my defense he would have never listened.

"You're insane. Slow down." Without the deadly fury in his voice he actually sounded nice. His voice was soft with a hint of an accent I couldn't figure out. And then his words registered.

"I'm insane?! I'm the one trying to get us as far away from those monsters back there as fast as I can and I'm insane?! I wasn't the one trying to choke the life out of his rescuer. I wasn't the one about to let himself become dinner and you think I'm insane!"

My foot was glued to the floor and I was weaving through traffic now that we had made it to the highway.

I had been screaming at him as I drove and the only sound now was my ragged breathing.

"You're in shock, why don't you pull over," he said soothingly, like I had just escaped from and asylum, as I narrowly missed taking off the back end of an SUV.

"I'm not in shock," I spit back, "I'm freaking out! There's a huge difference. What was supposed to be a routine rescue mission has now been turned into an evacuation. They had Trackers! Two of them!"

I knew I should be trying to calm down and figure out our next step but Seth's panicked voice had alarm bells going off. Seth never panicked. Trackers were the worst kind of monster but Seth never panicked.

"I'm sorry for attacking you before. I didn't understand."

He seemed a bit uncomfortable now that he knew he could have killed me. I didn't acknowledge his poor 'I'm sorry' but I did slow the car as we entered the more rundown part of town where the homeless, drunks, and druggies congregated.

I stopped suddenly in the middle of the street in a screeching halt and jumped with a terse, "Come on."

The car would be called in as stolen and I didn't want to have to hide from the police as well. We would just have to make the rest of the way on foot. Fingerprints didn't matter since we didn't exist.

That's when our 'Hail Mary' came. Rain started pouring down as if an entire ocean had just been dumped from the sky. Relief coursed through me and I thought I would collapse with the force of it. No tracker could follow us now. The rain would wash our scent from any path they would have followed.

"Where are we going?" he shouted over the thunder of rain.

"Somewhere safe for awhile and then we'll travel…get out of town." I told him, caution and sense having left me completely. I still didn't know if he could be trusted and here I was telling him the plan.

He was still a mystery.

The church was two miles away and completely abandoned. I went through a window on the side and quickly found my backup bag under the broken desk where I had put it upon arriving two months ago.

I grabbed it and then led the way through the sanctuary and up the flight of stairs to the bell tower.

My movements were quick and jerky, adrenaline still coursing through me. I had never truly been on my own when it came to engaging the enemy and now I had to take care of this experiment who terrified me more than the dogs. He had a predatory way about him when he moved. Fluid and graceful.

I shut the door and tossed the bag to one side of the room before striding toward one of the floor-to-ceiling windows. I could barely see the street with the rain still coming down hard but I saw no shadows.

Satisfied, I turned to see if my new companion needed anything, like shackles or something and instead came face to chest with him.

I jumped back and bit my tongue to keep from shrieking. I took a deep breath before raising a glare up at him.

He crossed his arms but otherwise didn't move.

"Did you want something?" I asked annoyed.

"You're hurt," he said, stating the obvious.

I narrowed my eyes, "I'm fine." Like I would admit weakness to anybody. Note the sarcasm.

He shook his head, "I can smell the blood and I grabbed you around the throat too hard."

"Well, give the guy a prize, he can smell blood." Now that he mentioned it I was feeling slightly woozy.

I pushed past him and went to my duffel. No way was I going to allow him to help clean any wounds I may have. I pulled out some chips, beef jerky, and two bottles of water. I would have preferred some soda pop but it didn't last well for long periods of time and I didn't know how long it would have to wait here.

"Why did you bring us here?" He had sat down beside the window and I tossed the water to him before easing down on the other side, the window between us, and dug into the food.

"It's safe and I had supplies here. We'll stay for the night and then I'll find a car to get us out of town. The only thing I have is a motorcycle and I am _not_ taking my baby on a road trip into the country."

Not to mention having him sitting behind me would keep me uptight and moody until we reached the meeting spot.

"So, I'm your prisoner then?" he asked amused.

I looked at him warily. If he decided to leave….well, I wouldn't stop him but I'd feel guilty.

"No," I started slowly, "but if you want help staying alive…" I left my sentence open to interpretation. No need to say what would happen if he did stay in town.

"What if I don't want your help?" He asked incisively.

I threw my hands up. Jeez, this guy could get me riled up way too easily. I'm usually the calm one of the bunch, letting the others take the questions while I observed. I hated talking for long amounts of time.

"Then you might as well jump out this window now and save yourself the misery, because you may know how to survive but they're everywhere. You'd spend the rest of your life looking over your shoulder. And let me tell you, that life wouldn't be long."

"How do you know they're everywhere?" He didn't sound skeptical, which made his questions confusing. Why did he need to know?

"I pay attention." I kept my answer short, hoping to end the conversation.

"Not very well." He better be referring to when he snuck up behind me 'cause that was the only time!

I decided the best comeback would be to go the childish way. So, I made a face and stuck out my tongue. He laughed and it was the first time I had seen his face in a cold and stony mask.

I watched him, curious as to what he had been through.

"What's your DNA mixed with, anyway?" I asked curiously, and then took a bite of jerky chewing slowly, giving him time to adjust to my abrupt question. He didn't seem scared or suspicious as most of the others had been though.

He stared at me with those green eyes and then very slowly uncoiled himself, bringing him within inches of my face. I pressed my self back and tensed, ready to lash out if he made any wrong moves.

He didn't though. He just froze while he kept my eyes locked with his. Then he changed. First his eyes, which were human and then animal the next. His pupils went to slits and then his skin turned. Black oil seemed to wash over him. From smooth to scaly.

My heart skipped a beat as I met the predator whose fluid grace I had only glimpsed at.

He parted his lips and allowed the fangs to slowly elongate out. I saw the venom drip and I lashed out. With air this time. I sent him flying, hard, into the wall as I leaped to the other side of the room, putting the open hole where the rope for the bell used to be between us.

He didn't seem fazed by my reaction. He stood back up, still serpient-like and stared at me again.

"Don't ever do that again," I hissed at him.

"You asked," he said with a shrug.

"Yeah, but I didn't ask for a show!" He had frightened me more than I would have liked. Wolf-like men I could handle but he was something I had never encountered before. Besides, I think my genes made up for the flight mode. No pun intended. Birds and snakes never mingled well.

He walked back to the window and slowly changed until he looked human again. I stayed where I was.

"So, what about you?" he asked conversationally.

Oh, no. He wasn't getting anymore out of me until Seth had a crack at him and then Lily could see if he could be trusted.

"Sorry, can't tell. Not until you've been deemed spy free," I said with an evil grin.

"What do you mean?" he asked warily, muscles tense and waiting.

"Couple years back we saved a kid. Took him in, showed him the ropes. First mission with him in on it and we lost one of our own. Turns out he was a double agent. Now, we take more precautions," I told him in a flat voice. Not one of the best memories I had.

He looked a little worried, like he expected some kind of torture, but nodded as if he understood our reasons.

I looked around at the empty stone room and then back at snake-guy.

"I don't even know your name and already we're sharing a room," I commented, trying to lighten the tension that had descended.

"Shane," He didn't even look up before answering, "you?"

"I told you already, remember? Choke hold?" I mimed hands squeezing around my throat. Guess I was still a little bitter.

He grimaced. "I thought you were just trying to get me to let go."

"Yeah, well, that too."

"So, your name really is Styx?"

"Nope, but you're not getting my real name." I amended a bit at his hurt look. "We try not to involve names so we use code ones. Mine's Styx, it was kinda an inside joke. You know, the river Styx in hell."

Amusement flashed through his eyes for a moment, "So, the others…their names aren't really Ice and Petals."

I glared at him. "Now you're fishing. Enough with the twenty questions. Get some sleep. I'll wake you when we need to leave."

I moved over to another window and took up surveillance.

"What about you?" I heard from behind me.

I looked at him over my shoulder and gave him a skeptical look, "Like I'm going to fall asleep with you watching over me? Think again." I scoffed.

He leaned back and gave me a smile. "But I promise not to bite," he whispered silkily.

"Go to sleep," I ordered in my 'don't even think about disobeying me' tone of voice. Amazingly enough, he did.

**Please please please review and tell me what you like or don't like. I need criticism! I don't mind the bad ones.**


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: James Patterson owns Fang and Stephenie Meyer owns Seth.

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far! I appreciate your comments. It helps the muse greatly.

**Seraphina's story continued**

**That's it! That's the last time I pull an all-nighter waiting for giant wolf men to come crashing through the door. It was bad enough coming off of my adrenaline high not to mention the serpent guy lying only feet away.**

**I took another swig of my coffee as we continued walking through downtown Seattle. We had ditched the church hideout and started on our trek at the ungodly hour of 5 a.m. I was looking for a good car that would make the trip on one gallon of gas. It wasn't like I carried around wads of cash.**

"**We shouldn't be stealing someone's car anyway," Shane's voice chastised from behind me.**

**I blew out a frustrated breath. "It's not stealing. I'm **_**borrowing**_**. Besides, would you rather try making the four hundred mile trip on foot? With slug eating trackers chasing us?" I asked sweetly. **

**His face twisted for a moment in what I could only imagine as him remembering last night's narrow escape. **

"**Fine, you win," he relented.**

**I smirked, "I usually do."**

**It wasn't much later that a very nice new GT 5000 Mustang came roaring past only to park hazardously on the side of the street. A man in what looked to be a really expensive suit climbed out all smug-like and walked into the very nice looking hotel we were walking past.**

"**Nothing like the chance to stick it to cheating slime-balls," I said while making my way over to the beautiful red convertible.**

"**I thought you wanted something that would last and how do you know he's cheating?" Shane asked exasperated.**

"**Yeah, well, something fast will just have to do and the guy was taking off his wedding band when he walked into a hotel. Detective skills 101."**

**I was in and revving the engine in less than two minutes. A new record, I thought with a mental grin.**

"**Now, off to never-never land!" I said cheerfully, the caffeine finally working its magic through my system.**

**Shane looked at me like he was wondering what he was doing allowing a mentally handicapped girl drive.**

"**Hey, I never said I didn't have a multiple personality disorder," I said while looking him dead in the eye, the most innocent wide-eyed look I could manage without breaking down in laughter.**

**He just allowed a smile to twitch at the corners of his lips. Finally! Some emotion other than zombie.**

"**I think I might enjoy this trip just a little too much," he commented dryly.**

**The first hour of our trip was made in silence. Not much to say after stealing a $50,000 convertible. I enjoyed how the wonderful red beauty drove as I coasted past minivans and semis. Using my amazing ability, I could issue little effort to bend light waves and the air surrounding our stolen vehicle in order to pass unnoticed amongst any noble law enforcers.**

**Sometimes my life was just that good. Too bad serpent guy had to ruin it.**

"**I want to join you."**

**I gave him a 'what-the-heck-are-you-talking-about' look. I didn't trust myself to speak. I had the horrible tendency to use sarcasm and now wasn't the time.**

"**When I pass your test, I want to join your group in helping defeat the bad guys. You know, exact revenge for everything they did to me. I don't want to live a life pretending to be something I'm not. I want to be able to be myself around others like me," Shane said as he stared straight ahead.**

**Wow, that was the most he's said at one time since I busted him out of that cage. Guess he's been thinking a lot about this. And why wouldn't he, I thought, it is his life.**

"**It's not my decision." Was all I said. It's been a long while since anyone wanted to join in on our little group and my father was the only one who could give the ok.**

"**Whose is it?" he asked, looking at me with that unrelenting gaze of his.**

**I kept my eyes on the road in front of me. Suddenly, this car was just a little too small for comfort.**

"**Someone you'll meet later, alright? Now, how about a five minute break, huh?" I said while crossing two lanes and narrowly making the exit for a rest stop. I pulled in quickly and jumped out of the car before he could get unbuckled.**

**There were vending machines on the side of the building and I pulled out a couple of one dollar bills left over as change for my coffee. Hmmm, that Snickers bar looked pretty good.**

**I watched as Shane's reflection moved behind me instead of the Snickers bar making its way slowly to take its plunge to the bottom.**

"**Why are you avoiding me?" I couldn't help the flip my stomach made at his voice. On second thought, I couldn't help any inner butterflies from making a sudden flurry whenever he even looked at me. This is so not good, I thought.**

**How was I supposed to be in charge of this guy if one half of me was attracted to him and the other one was screaming 'Run!' I was assuming that part was my avian DNA speaking up. Or maybe it was my human part thinking the guy was like a vampire with those fangs of his. **

"**Whose says I'm avoiding you?" I tried to keep my voice nonchalant, I really did, but those stupid butterflies were moving from my stomach and up my throat.**

"**You pulled over," he accused.**

"**I was hungry." Okay, so he was right about me avoiding him but I couldn't help arguing with him. I didn't like to lose. Not to anybody.**

"**You were in the far lane. You made a split second decision to avoid answering my questions."**

**I still didn't look at him as I retrieved my chocolaty goodness and went to make a hasty retreat back to the car where there was a radio that could be turned up a few notches too loud.**

**His hand grasped my arm and he swiftly, but gently I noticed, tugged me back and turned me so that I was facing him while my back was against the snack machine. Well, doesn't this bring back memories. Does anybody remember the choke hold? **

**I had stilled the second he had grabbed my arm and I looked at his hand pointedly before finally looking him in the eyes. **

"**Let go," I whispered, ice making my words as cold as possible. Feelings or not, I so did not like anybody pushing me around.**

**He did so, but in a way that let me know he wasn't afraid of what I might do to him if he hadn't. His amused expression came back and I wondered for a second if he wasn't a little crazy himself.**

"**Who are we meeting?" He asked again.**

**I really didn't have enough time to think about an evasive response, but I didn't have to as a cry caught my attention. I closed my eyes and tilted my head. It helped me concentrate and hone in on the location. It sounded like it was coming from the trees behind the building.**

"**Stay here," I told Shane, walking off towards the trees. My father once told me I was like my mother in this way, I could never leave anyone in distress behind if I could help it.**

**I didn't exactly hear Shane following me but I felt his presence. I didn't argue, it would have been a waste of my time. He probably thought I was just trying to avoid him again.**

**I quickly made my way to the source. A little girl about five years old was huddled on the ground shaking. She looked up at me as I came closer. Her eyes were red rimmed and her pale cheeks were wet from crying. "Are you lost?" I was about to bend down next to her when she smiled, flashing razor sharp teeth. My blood froze. Oh, how could I be so stupid?!**

"**Run!" I screeched as I turned and barreled my way back to the car. **

**Shane didn't need to be told twice as he sprinted ahead of me. Without warning Erasers dropped from the top of the building and I heard others come from the trees. How could I have not heard them? And how did they know where we were? I stopped all of a sudden on a crazy impulse. I wanted the distraction of a fight around me. Chaos always made a great retreat.**

**I didn't care about the Erasers as much as I cared about the little girl behind me. Or should I say, the Tracker. Trackers were intelligent. They could manipulate their bodies in order to lure in their prey and once they were close enough…I shivered.**

**I jumped, punched, kicked, swung, and danced my way through Erasers like they were annoying flies buzzing around my head. They didn't get up after I hit them, I was too scared to be gentle.**

**Shane was in his serpent form and I'm sure the strikes he made with his fangs were fatal but I couldn't care. I got to the car and jumped in, starting the engine and pulling out with a screech of the tires. That was Shane's cue to throw himself inside and, without waiting for him to close his door, I took off.**

**That was way too close. I scanned the skies for helicopters and my rearview mirror for tails but I saw nothing. That didn't mean they weren't there. I pushed the gas pedal farther and the car raced down the highway that made the surrounding cars small blurs of color.**

"**You hurt?" I asked Shane, who hadn't said a word in the thirty seconds since we had escaped.**

"**No." And that was that. He sounded tense and angry and I glanced at him to make sure he wasn't a Tracker about to eat me like that little girl had been.**

**He saw my look and sighed, relaxing his expression, "Are you hurt?" **

**I ran a mental check on any pains or bruises but nothing screamed urgent.**

"**Not sure. Nothing hurts at the moment."**

"**How could they have known?" He sounded angry again.**

"**I don't know," I lied. I did have a theory. **

**The look on Shane's face told me he didn't believe me but there was no way I was going to tell him what I thought. That he had a tracker on him, of the mechanical type not the eating ones, and it wasn't anywhere visible. Probably in his head or an arm.**

**I kept my eyes on the road. I needed to get to Seth, he would know what to do.**

**I didn't dare stop again. It seemed as long as we were moving they couldn't find us. It was a good thing the tank was full when we got it or we wouldn't have made it.**

**The safe house was ten hours east and by the time I pulled into the yard my eyes were blurry and my wings cramped from sitting so long.**

**Shane had kept blissfully quiet and had fallen asleep six hours ago. He jerked awake as I shut off the engine and opened the door. **

**I was hoping Seth had gotten here ahead of us but nothing moved inside. For a few seconds I panicked, **_**What if he hadn't gotten away?**_

**Electricity snapped and Shane's unconscious body thumped to the ground. Seth stood over him with a stun gun in his hand and a grim expression.**

"**What are you doing?" Astonished, I could only stare at him. Seth didn't need to use a stun gun to knock people out.**

"**He had a GPS implant. The electricity would have fried it so they can't track him anymore. Whether he knew about it or not is for Lily to find out," his voice was rough and he had dried blood on his shirt.**

"**What happened?" I asked, relieved Seth could now take over. **

**He picked Shane up and slung him over his shoulder, striding to the door.**

"**Met up with Lily and Tyler and took the plane. I wanted to make sure we got here before you. Tyler was able to hack their system and found out about the GPS. We were monitoring your progress the whole way."**

"**Does my father know yet?" I asked.**

**Seth shook is head but didn't comment. My stomach flipped, "You can't get a hold of him can you?"**

"……**No." Before I could interrogate him further we had stepped inside the house.**

"**Sera!" A voice screeched as a white blur came hurtling towards me. Lily's body slammed into mine and I hugged her back while smoothing her hair.**

"**Hey, kiddo. You been keeping an eye on these two for me?" I asked her quietly.**

**She pulled her head back so I could see her roll her eyes, "Seth wouldn't believe me about the new experiment. I told him Shane's on our side but then Tyler found the GPS thing and they wouldn't listen," her voice was like small bells and I smiled despite what she had said.**

"**Oh, really. Well, let's go knock some sense into them," I said as I took her hand and followed the path Seth had taken. Tyler was Lily's guardian and friend, Seth was her father figure who helped her fall asleep at night, and I was the one who spoiled her rotten and taught her all the sneaky, dirty little tricks. I loved being the irresponsible one sometimes.**

**Seth had set Shane on a chair in one of the bare rooms. We never used chains or rope, it would have sent a mixed message. Besides, we all knew what it would have felt like to wake up bound and interrogated. We weren't like that.**

"**He has so many colors about him," Lily said dreamily, "Like the aurora borealis, only smaller."**

"**You mean you can see his aura, like a psychic?" Curious, I watched her face.**

"**Yeah, but I can only see his," she sounded awed and disappointed at the same time. With as many things as she could do, I wondered if she was getting tired of doing the impossible without limits or explanations. **

"**He should be waking up soon. Why don't you take Lily and get something to eat, I'm sure you haven't had anything during your trip," Seth suggested. I knew he was just trying to get us out of the room, but the mention of food had my stomach rumbling and I pulled Lily with me to the kitchen. It was a nice kitchen too. Wood cabinets, marble counters, an island for us to sit and eat together. **

"**We stocked up while waiting for you to arrive so there should be plenty for you to choose from," Lily mentioned from her perch atop one of the stools at the island watching me. Her hands were placed one on top of another in front of her, reminding me of those prim and proper girls whose parents were filthy rich. Lily always had the best posture. She was supposedly a poster child of the perfect kid.**

"**Why are you always so straight backed?" I asked while pulling out some eggs and bacon.**

"**No one would think suspiciously of me if I looked so sweet and innocent," she replied, honey coating her words. I eyed her with a wicked grin. My little girl was learning. Tyler walked in and sat next to his ward with a heavy sigh.**

"**What's the matter with you?" I asked none too gently.**

"**Seth says I can't stay and help interrogate. I mean, I'm fifteen! I've fought Erasers and hacked into the organization but he still won't let me help with any new experiments!" Tyler was getting angrier and angrier the longer he ranted and he had started waving his hands around. So not like him.**

**Lily placed a hand on his arm and he immediately quieted, "Sorry, Lil. Guess I got carried away." **

"**Seth's just looking out for you. He knows you can handle it, but this experiment's a lot older and stronger than the others. I don't think he wants to risk the chance of you getting hurt," she explained quietly.**

**Tyler let out another sigh and gave a grudging nod. **_**They're so cute together**_**, I couldn't help but notice with a smile as I wolfed down my meal.**

**After this, I was going to take a shower and get some sleep. Seth could take care of Shane. And Lily and Tyler would be fine for awhile on their own. It was my turn to shut my eyes for a couple hours. **

**I crashed in one of the spare bedrooms just as the sun was setting. The red light of the sun painted shadows on the walls and I fell asleep dreaming of flames. And then it turned to Zachary. He had captured my father, but instead of blazing red eyes he had the eyes of a snake and when he looked up at me, I screamed until he exploded into a million glass pieces.**

**I don't think this chapter was my best but it was the only path my muse would allow. Next chapter will be up in another day or two. Reviews are love!!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:**** Fang belongs to James Patterson and Seth belongs to Stephenie Meyer.**

Seraphina's Song continued

I dressed in yet another pair of jeans and pulled on a shirt with slits in the back. It had been too long since I had spread my wings and I needed to feel some air under them or I might just go crazy with the effort of keeping them scrunched up.

My hair was a mess so I pulled it back in a half attempt of a pony tail and slid my combat boots on. I loved my boots. They just screamed 'kick some monster butt.'

I stomped downstairs and glared at Seth for letting Shane wake me up before grabbing a glass and pouring some orange juice. I gulped it down before turning to Seth and asking when we would leave.

"Whenever you're ready," Seth announced, "we've already got the jet packed and ready to go. We should be there before lunch time."

I nodded my head since my mouth was currently stuffed with food. It wasn't that I didn't like the jet, it was faster than driving that was for sure, but I wouldn't get the opportunity to spread my wings until we landed. I realized that I hadn't been flying for three days and just the thought of it made my wings ache.

Shane was looking at me with an unreadable expression on his face, but strode out the door before I could ask what he wanted. Guy was getting stranger by the day. One minute he's playing jokes and laughing and the next he's all doom and gloom. He's like me when it's that time of the month, I thought in horror.

I shrugged, oh well, not my problem.

I quickly cleaned up the kitchen and then ran outside toward the runway behind the barn. Seth said this place must have belonged to a farmer who dusted his crops. It was the only explanation as to why a runway would be in some farmer's backyard, I guess.

My father and I bought the jet a couple of years ago to save time and so we could get across oceans without having to stop and rest on some unsuspecting boat. It was convenient at times and yet ironic. Two avian hybrids flying a jet.

It helped though when Tyler and Lily came along. They couldn't fly or run as fast as Seth when he was in wolf form.

I saw Seth, Tyler, and Shane standing beside the stairs and went to join them, scanning the fields and the house one more time. Force of habit ingrained by my father, I guess.

"Where's Lily?" I asked Tyler as soon as I was within speaking distance. Three pairs of confused eyes turned toward me.

"We thought she was with you," Tyler answered, panic in his voice.

"You thought?" I questioned them angrily. Tyler never went anywhere without knowing where Lily was. How could he have lost her!

The question was obvious enough. Lily was an enigma. She could do whatever she wanted without thinking about the consequences.

I spun a 360 as Tyler ran back towards the house yelling Lily's name. Seth was already in the jet checking every nook and cranny. I flicked my eyes to Shane to see him still as stone, eyes shut.

"What are you…" I started before he cut me off with his hand held up.

"I'm listening," he whispered.

I rolled my eyes in a 'whatever' gesture before looking back towards the house to see Tyler running back, shaking his head. Seth landed next to me without a sound, "She's not in the jet."

My stomach clenched at the possibilities. They couldn't have gotten Lily. There was no way. We were all here and we hadn't sensed anything wrong!

I was still scanning the horizon when I stopped at the patch of trees a hundred yards off. Shane's eyes snapped open at the same time as I finished calculating the chances of her disappearing before we realized she was gone, "She went that way. I think they lured in."

I was already running and ripping my jacket off. I could fly faster than I could run. I snapped my wings open and took to the sky, barely skimming over the tops of the trees as I searched for a flash of gold hair.

I saw Seth in his wolf form running below with Tyler on his back and looked in the direction he was heading. There was a clearing a mile away and I didn't hesitate before soaring up as quickly as I could. When I was high enough I folded my wings in and torpedoed down. The ground quickly rushed up and I saw Lily, sweet innocent Lily, inches away from a Trackers' teeth.

Terror squeezed my throat shut and trapped the scream threatening to pierce the sky. I didn't think as I slammed my feet into the Trackers' head without even slowing. Dirt flew up as we skidded across the ground for a dozen yards before rolling to a stop.

I knew the Tracker was dead the second my head stopped spinning enough for me to see the blood covering me from head to toe. There was no remorse at the thought of finally ending this monsters life but I knew my father wouldn't be too happy with me when I told him.

I resented my father in that moment. Looking down at what was once a bloodthirsty monster about to eat one of the only people I cared most about in this world and then I heard Lily scream from across the field and all thoughts left as I raced to protect her once again.

The Tracker hadn't come alone, six Erasers swarmed from out of the trees, red eyed and snarling.

Seth exploded out of the forest with a wild snarl, taking out two as he landed and throwing Tyler into another with the force of the impact.

I skidded to a stop next to Lily's crumpled body and carefully gathered her into my arms as the last three Erasers charged towards us. Shane popped out of nowhere and easily kept them at bay.

"Go!" Shane ordered after swinging a kick into the third Eraser's face. I nodded once as our eyes locked and I saw the controlled fury he directed at the guards who had kept him locked up for most of his life. I hesitated for a split second before I used all of my strength to launch myself into the air.

I flew low and fast, knowing once we were all on the jet and in the air that we would be safe. At least from this latest attack.

I was the first to arrive back and I ran up the stairs and into the closed interior of the jet, laying Lily down and strapping her in before crashing into the pilot's seat and starting the jet. There was no time to go through a pre-flight check but I knew Seth took good care of our transportation. We would be able to deal for the time being.

A howl came from the forest, signaling Seth's and Tyler's retreat. I left the hatch open as I slowly brought the plane to the end of the runway, swinging around to face the long open stretch of cement.

There was a popping sound and Shane appeared right beside me, ragged and out of breathe, as blood trickled down his temple. There was no time for that now and I screamed for him to get in the back with Lily.

My heart pounded with the adrenaline soaring the my veins as every fiber of being told me to spread my wings and launch myself at the enemy instead of sitting in a hunk of metal preparing to run.

The engines whined as they got ready to push the plane into the sky. I started the jet racing down the runway, watching the house get closer and closer. We were just racing past as it exploded. Flames and debris shot into the sky and onto the runway but we were already yards away.

The hatch was still open and loose papers and bags were flying around the cabin. Seth raced along side us before jumping in, transforming midair in order to make it through the door without ripping a bigger whole into the plane. I heard them crash into the other side as Shane hurriedly closed the hatch with a click as I took our jet soaring off the ground and into the blue sky as Erasers swarmed out of the forest. Their heads bent back to watch our retreat. Teeth glistening as the sun's rays hit them.

"Report!" I tried to order from my scratchy voice.

"I'm good," Seth whispered from behind me. I glanced back to see him spread eagle on the floor, breathing heavily.

"Bruised, but I'll live," Tyler said shakily from his corner. I looked at Shane next and he nodded his head. He would live too.

"Lily?" I asked.

Everyone looked to where I had left Lily in the front row. She was sitting upright, her eyes open and watching us, her thumb in her mouth. We waited, holding our breathe, as she cocked her head to one side and looked at us questioningly.

"Lils, are you okay?" I asked again more slowly and forcefully.

"Of course. Why wouldn't I be?" She asked sweetly. We looked at her, our faces mirroring confusion.

"I'm just saying, I'm not the one covered in blood," she explained patiently.

I couldn't quiet manage a smile but I was relieved. She'd be okay. The rest of us on the other hand were a little worse for wear. Tyler's arm looked broken, Seth was bleeding from multiple wounds, Shane had a gash on his forehead, and I had been a human canon ball.

I could see my father's face now as we all got of the plane four hours from now. He wasn't going to be happy. I watched the clouds float by and wondered if I could just live in the sky for the rest of my life.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Falcon219 come in, this is Home Base, come in." We were twenty minutes away from our land site when the radio crackled to life. I reached for the headset and made the necessary adjustments before radioing back.

"Home Base this is Falcon219. We are T-minus nineteen minutes with five passengers ready to feel solid ground again. Do we have a clear for landing?"

There was a pause as my father processed the increased number of passengers, "Has all cargo been cleared?"

I sighed, "Of course."

"Then you are clear to land. Welcome back, Sera."

**Mayday! Mayday! Sorry this chapter was so short. My muse is losing fuel and it's slowly crashing! Any ideas? Motivation? Encouragement? What am I missing in this story? **

**Next chapter may take awhile so don't expect anything for tomorrow, especially since I'm working. But don't worry, once inspiration hits I won't stop till it's done.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer****: Fang belongs to James Patterson and Seth belongs to Stephenie Meyer.**

Seraphina's Song continued

I managed to land the jet without a single bounce off the tarmac and park it safely inside the hanger before running through post-flight with Seth. I knew my father was waiting for us inside and couldn't help worrying about his reaction to Shane and our disheveled appearances.

My father, of course, never got angry, at least not openly, but he did get quiet. Real quiet. I only ever heard him raise his voice whenever we were running or escaping a facility. He would have to in order to be heard above the alarms and roars of outrage. I did not want to find out what would make him yell.

Seth and I finished as quickly as possible, moving into the cabin where Tyler and Lily were sleeping when we were done in the front. Shane was sitting in one of the seats with his eyes closed until he heard us and then his eyes shot open. I didn't believe for a second that he got a moment of sleep.

I think he was still on alert around us and I couldn't blame him. He had been with us for only a couple of days and already we had been attacked twice. Once even at our own safe house.

I unlocked the hatch and lowered the stairs before allowing Seth to climb out with a sleeping Tyler in his arms. I went to pick up Lily and saw Shane already had her. She was curled up against his chest and was so peaceful that I didn't argue. Besides, I trusted him not to hurt her even if he didn't trust us.

He needed some proof that we trusted him. Not only with our secrets, but with our lives.

I nodded at him to climb out before following. I led him towards the hanger door where Seth was waiting and together we made our way to the place we called home.

The ranch house looked small compared to the vast fields around, but as you got closer it grew. With three floors the inside could easily hold a hundred people and still have room. The outside had a complete wrap around porch. We had painted every inch of the outside white except for the shutters which had to be black. The roof was black too.

I hated the lack of color. It was too impersonal.

I ran up the few steps that led up to the porch first in order to open the door for Seth and Shane, since they had their arms full. I listened to the screen door swing shut with a snap behind us as Shane took a moment to survey his surroundings.

We had renovated every floor, of course, to meet our needs but we still had a few general house qualities. The first floor did hold a kitchen and a living room where we could eat and lay around but it also had our control room for our radios and computers. Not our main ones but enough to contact some of our allies across the world. The really heavy duty ones were below us in our bomb shelter.

The second floor held a couple rooms, our own gym, and a small weapons room. Seth, Tyler, and Lily stayed on the second floor and we deposited the two sleeping children in their respective beds before heading back downstairs where my father would be waiting to see who had come with us.

I caught my reflection in a mirror and grimaced. Blood still covered most of my outfit and I had a bruise covering my left cheek. My lip was split and I couldn't talk without cracking it open again. I sighed, not my best appearance.

The first chance I got I kicked off my shoes and walked barefoot into the kitchen. My father sat at the wooden table, a folder open in front of him. It must have been the information he received from our contact.

He wore his custom attire of black cargos and a black knit long sleeve shirt. His hair needed to be cut again to keep it out of his eyes and I could see the fatigue bringing the corners of mouth down.

He looked up and I could see the shock pass across his face before being replaced by a questioning gaze. Seth flopped down into a chair beside my father and let out a relieved sigh.

My father sent a mild glare at Seth for not reporting immediately, urging him to explain with the mild threat of a full on glare and maybe some violence. Shane kept a guarded stance in the doorway as I perched myself on top of the island with a wet washcloth trying to get as much grime and blood off my hands and face.

"She crashed into a Tracker," Seth explained and my father's face paled. I sent a full blown glare at Seth who couldn't even shrivel from its heat as his eyes were shut. He must have been exhausted, but he could have at least been a little less blunt.

"It was about to eat Lily, I had to do something," I explained quickly as my father stood up and made his way over to me.

He took the washcloth out of my hand and started to gently clean my face, "Are you alright," he asked quietly. I nodded, all the tension leaving my body as I realized we were all truly safe this time. No one would dare try and attack us here. If they even knew where it was.

I closed my eyes as he held my chin cupped in his hand and continued to rub the cool cloth across my face. I felt like time stopped and gave us a small father daughter moment that was long overdue. He needed to know I was safe and I needed some attention.

"What's his name?" He asked quietly as he finished one last stroke down my cheek. I opened my eyes and looked up at him, noticing the circles under his eyes. When was the last time he had slept?

_Shane_, I thought to him, _I trust him._

My father just nodded his head before he turned and pierced Shane with an unreadable stare. My lips twitched as Shane visibly straightened and held my father's gaze for as long as he could.

It was honestly the longest any newcomer had gone without breaking, but my father was the master at silent stares and I knew Shane was dying to know who he was and what was going to happen now that we had arrived.

"I'd like to help in bringing them down, sir," Shane declared strongly, "I'll do whatever job you need me to do."

I looked from Shane's defiant stance to my father's languid pose, his arms crossed, an approving look in his eyes. Shane wouldn't be able to see it yet but I could already tell he had passed whatever test my father held for all newcomers.

My father nodded slowly, as if considering Shane's first test of loyalty, "Then you can start by cleaning up and getting some rest. You'll have a new pair of clothes in the morning."

Shane looked like he really didn't know how to respond at first, but as my father ordered Seth and I to get some rest too he relaxed, letting his hands uncurl from the fists they were in to keep them from shaking.

Seth made his way up to his room with a grumbled good night and Shane followed. I didn't move until I had my father's attention.

"You need to get some sleep too, you know." I told him quietly. We had done this too many times before that he didn't even try and argue with me this time. I wouldn't go to bed until he did. Or I wouldn't eat until he ate. Or showered until he cleaned up. Whatever it was, I always won in the end.

It was the only way to keep him from letting himself go and making himself sick with the constant searches and fighting. Seth was shocked the first time I tried it and I'm pretty sure he thought I was insane, but I was just as stubborn as my father and I knew he cared about me more than himself. He finally realized that to take care of me he had to take care of himself first.

One of these days I wouldn't even have to remind him either.

He gave me a tired smile before linking my hand with his and tugging me upstairs, "Come on, little Chickaree. I'll debrief all of you tomorrow but we're all going to need all of our strength for this one."

"We always need all of our strength. When will the time come when we need a third of it, huh?" I teased him.

"I didn't just mean physically," he tried to keep it light, but he must have known something. Something very serious because his grip tightened and he pulled me into a hug. I was so surprised I didn't even have time to return it before he disappeared into his own room.

I stood there for a moment wondering what kind of news we would be hearing tomorrow, was my father finally moving on and waking up from his thirst for revenge or was he afraid of something?

An rather unsettling feeling squirmed in the pit of my stomach before I shook it away. I wouldn't dwell on it now. I was safe. We were all safe, at home, with my father.

I showered twice before pulling on clean night clothes and crawling into bed. I didn't let myself think about Zachary or Trackers or my father's grief. I wanted something peaceful to dream about.

Emerald eyes instantly swam into view and before I realized it, I was drifting off to sleep.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXx

The most wonderful aroma tugged me back to the world of consciousness. Seth must be cooking, I thought. I rolled over and looked at the ceiling, just enjoying the feel of my nest of blankets and pillows. I breathed in the smell of coffee and bacon cooking two floors down and listened to Lily's high pitched laughter.

I slowly made my way downstairs after getting dressed and watched the scene in the kitchen from the stairs for a moment. I watched as Tyler made sure Lily had enough bacon on her plate just to have my father steal two pieces when Tyler's back was turned. I watched as Seth continued to scramble eggs, the rays of the sun shining through the window accenting his russet colored skin. I watched as Shane smiled, chuckling at Tyler's baffled look when he realized Lily's plate was empty.

I smiled, committing this comfortable scene to one of the very few happy memories I had left. My father must have sensed me watching him and he glanced my way, smiling an invitation to come and join them.

"How long has everyone been up?" I asked as I took a seat next to Tyler and began to dig into my own plate of food.

"Not very long," my father answered warmly, as he glanced around the kitchen at everyone gathered together.

Seth finished cleaning up and straddled a chair, crossing his arms over the top, waiting for whatever was going to come out of my father's mouth next. At Seth's silent questioning posture the rest of us quieted down and tuned into the conversation.

"We have one last mission to accomplish in order to bring Zachary's organization down," my father announced without preamble.

Silence followed. No one knew how to respond to that. We were always going from one mission to another. What were we supposed to do after this? One last mission?

My father must have known what I was thinking, "Our work will not even be close to finished. We will still have to find every hybrid out there that is a threat to the populace, find all of the other underground organizations Zachary has been affiliated with and work to bring them down too," he informed us matter-of-factly, "but this mission will start the downfall we need to eradicate them all….if we succeed."

Strangely, I couldn't feel anything after that. I don't think I even moved as I stared unblinkingly at the granite countertop. If we succeed…

I dimly heard Seth ask about what the mission entailed and tuned back in to get the necessary details.

We would have to go back to Seattle. To the docks on Eliot Bay. There was a train that would be carrying Zachary and his precious cargo that led right past the docks. He was going to try and transfer all of his formulas onto a cargo ship and take them to some un-named island where they'd be completely inaccessible.

If we destroyed those formulas and captured Zachary than the organization would have nothing to build on, not too mention no leader. We knew he never let anyone duplicate those formulas. He was the only one with the knowledge. His greed for power would be his downfall.

For the first time in my life I actually saw an end to this whole thing. A future to explore, to experience the world without fighting my way through it. No more hiding, staying under the radar, slipping through the shadows.

I quietly slipped out and made my way outside where I could raise my face to the sun and let it warm my skin. I listened to the horses snort and stomp their hooves off in the distance, the grass rustling together as the wind played across the field. I breathed in the smell of fresh air and the promise it held for me.

I took off my shirt, leaving me in my white cami, allowing my wings to stretch to their full twelve foot span. It wasn't difficult to start running, to jump against the wooden fence, to push myself off with a flap of my wings, and to soar high up into the sky where I could get as close as I could to freedom.

I flew without a destination in mind, flying higher and higher until I heard strong wings from behind. I didn't need to look to know it was my father. We had flown together so many times before, it was like knowing someone's footsteps as they walked across the ground.

"Do you really think we can do this?" I asked him as I rolled over in the air in a smooth circle.

"Yes," he answered, certainty making his voice strong.

"Does this mean we'll get to go back?" I continued, this time looking over to see his reaction.

His face went blank and unreadable. I sighed. It was more obvious if he tried to hide his feelings than if he tried to fake them.

"Go back?" he questioned, as if he didn't know what I was talking about.

"Back to where we lived before mom died. Back to where Seth grew up. Back to where we were happy." I answered. I didn't want to keep living on the ranch after this was over. It had too many darker memories. I wanted to start over. I wanted Seth to see his family again. I wanted to see where mom was buried.

He was quiet for a very long time and I wondered if he was ever going to answer me. I followed as he took us back down to the ground, landing softly inside the horse fence line. I could see the house in the distance and we started walking slowly back. The grass cold beneath my feet.

"Sera," he started quietly, hesitantly, "there's a safety box in Portland. It's under your mother's name, you'll know the password when you get there. Everything inside will give you the answers you need to make your next decision," he finished, somber.

I didn't know why he was telling me this. Why couldn't he come with me to get it? Why did he want me to go alone?

"Daddy?" My voice was hardly recognizable, as small and vulnerable-like as it was, but my father wouldn't explain further.

He just took my hand and held it as we walked through the field, as we slipped through the fence, as we climbed the stairs, and he didn't let go until we were in the living room where Seth and Shane were sitting and looking over maps of Seattle.

And just like that we were thrown back into the world of revenge and all feelings of foreboding and confusion were shoved aside.

I looked up and met Shane's eyes for a brief moment. Those emerald eyes that made me feel like I could do anything and I resolved myself not to fail. I wanted that future that had just made itself known over the horizon.

That safety box in Portland.

**I apologize for the wait but I didn't have this ready after I posted the fourth chapter. **

**I promise more action will be coming. And I'll try not to make this too long of a story. Although, there may be a sequel or tangent story later on, if you'd like. **

**Reviews are what keep me going! Hint Hint ****J**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer:**** Fang belongs to James Patterson and Seth belongs to Stephenie Meyer. Song "Beautiful Disaster" by Kelly Clarkson. Lullaby from ****Hawksong**** by Amelia Atwater Rhodes.**

**Side note: there is an excerpt in here that I felt I needed to share. A small part of me that I wanted to have in common with Sera. **

**Hope you enjoy.**

Seraphina's Song continued

We spent the rest of the day planning and pouring over maps of Seattle's docks while Tyler worked on hacking into Zachary's mainframe. In the end, all he got was strained eyes and cramped hands. He looked miserable that he couldn't give anything to contribute and sulked off to his room.

He wouldn't be able to fight either. We needed him to protect Lily, since she was unwilling to fight, and keep an eye on things from a distance. He would be our coordinator this time around and I worried he would be too distracted to do the job. But I would have to trust him, as I've always done.

By nightfall, we were all tense and weary. Each of us in our own heads, going over what we had to do, what needed to be done, if we could pull this off. It was a never ending circle of what if's and I couldn't take much more of it. My head felt like a dozen bees were buzzing around chaotically inside.

I found myself on the roof after dinner laying back and looking at all the stars. I know it's obvious I love the sky. I mean I have wings for goodness sake. The feeling of being in control up there so high above the ground. The freedom of it. It made me feel like nothing could ever bring me down.

But I absolutely loved the stars. I don't think I could survive being locked up somewhere without any chance to see them at night. I've always been a little claustrophobic. Ironic, since I've never spent a day in a cage like my father and mother have.

I think it was the fear though. Of imagining what they went through that I believed in that horrible trapped feeling so much I made it real for myself.

I've never told anyone about it, but I think Seth suspects. He was the only other one to look after me after my mother died. My father was in no condition to function properly and so it fell to Seth to raise me for the first three months. He's been like my older brother ever since. Always keeping an eye on me.

A soft thud brought me back to reality. I focused on the dark figure looking down at me blocking a third of the sky from my view.

"What are you thinking about?" Shane asked curiously.

"At the moment, I'm thinking you should get out of the way. You're blocking Orion's belt." I told him truthfully and without my usual amount of sarcasm.

I couldn't see him due to the sun having set two hours ago but I could feel him smiling. He didn't hesitate in laying down beside me and looking up at the sky, too. We lay there in silence for awhile, just watching the small wavering suns light-years away, lost in our own thoughts. Albeit this time they were more peaceful. No more bees buzzing.

I wanted to explain what I was feeling, to be able to share this one thing with someone. It felt a little wrong to keep it all to myself, like I was hiding the world's greatest treasure. I worked to gather my thoughts into a coherent sentence before I started speaking.

"They remind me….that every problem I face is _so_ insignificant compared to what the entire world is facing." I whispered very slowly, not wanting to shatter the peace surrounding us.

"When I look at them," I continued, "_everything_ goes away. I'm invincible and yet just a flicker of existence compared to those stars. It makes me grateful for the chances I get every day. To breathe….to laugh….to love."

He was very quiet as he listened to my confession and didn't reply for a long, long while. I had been outside for almost three hours now and was beginning to shiver as the heat from the roof began to fade.

"We need to get you back inside," Shane commented, taking my hand and pulling me up until we were standing at the edge of the roof looking down at the light spilling out of the first floor windows.

"Shall we jump or do you want to climb through a window?" I asked him, wondering if he had the strength to make such a small jump.

"How about we do neither," he coaxed and before I knew it, one second I was on the roof and the next I was on the ground looking at my shoes. My head felt slightly dizzy for a moment but otherwise I was fine.

"You can teleport people, too?" I asked curiously.

Shane smirked, "Apparently."

I looked at him in shock, "You mean that was your first time trying?" I'm ashamed to say my voice rose an octave higher and I quickly put on a mask of irritation and anger.

"No, I teleported an Eraser once, but I had my calculation wrong and he ended up in a wall," he explained, the picture of calm.

I grimaced at the mental image that conjured up before shaking my head in mock-disbelief, "Come on. We're leaving tomorrow. Can't stay up too late."

He nodded his head in acquiescence and extended his arm in front bowing slightly, inviting me to go in first. I smiled at his antics. It was rare any of us just let go and let ourselves be silly. To many people with their guards down always led to disaster.

"You should smile more often," Shane suggested quietly once the door was closed and locked behind us.

That, of course, immediately made my smile disappear. It also made me more conscious of my actions around him. I pulled my wings in tighter against my back to keep them from rustling in agitation.

There I go again! What is wrong with me?

"Well….good-night." I said, avoiding looking him in his eyes before running up to my room, making sure my door was closed before collapsing on my bed face first.

He's just a guy, I told myself. A very tall, well-muscled guy. Whose skin was the color of Irish cream stirred in coffee. With dark emerald eyes that sparkled with untold mysteries. A voice that lilted with the music of some ancient culture and….OH MY GOSH!

What am I doing? You don't like. You don't like him. You don't like him. He's creepy! Yes….creepy! There we go. He turns into a snake and birds do not do well around snakes.

I sighed. I was giving myself a headache. What was so wrong about admitting to myself that I was attracted to him. Nothing. There's nothing wrong with that, right?

Ugh! I needed something to distract me. I couldn't go off on a tangent in my head and worry about my personal problems when we had the most important mission starting tomorrow.

I jumped up and turned on my ipod without looking to see what song had been playing last. I must have turned it off in the middle of the song because the next words immediately started playing.

**He's magic and myth**

**As strong as what I believe**

**A tragedy with**

**More damage than a soul should see**

Oh no. How is this supposed to help me? I fumbled for the settings.

**Oh and I don't know**

**I don't know what he's after**

**But he's so beautiful**

**Such a beautiful disaster**

I quickly turned on a heavy rock metal song and plugged my headphones in my ears so I could turn it up loud enough to block all thoughts racing around in my head.

I couldn't risk getting closer to Shane. I could trust him, as part of the team, but anything else would be too much. I don't think I could survive opening my heart to someone. And who's to say he likes me anyways?

That only made me depressed to think about. I shook my head hard. I needed to stay focused. Think about this after the mission, I commanded myself before crawling into bed with the music still blaring.

XxXxXxXxXxXx

It was raining the next day. Not sprinkling gray clouds raining but black roiling clouds, lightning striking left and right, and the rain fell so fast it hurt to go outside. Every time the thunder cracked and boomed Lily jumped and whimpered in Seth's arms, who cradled her against his chest as he sat on the couch.

Tyler never left their side, looking like a guardian against all that would dare try and take physical form just to scare his charge some more. My father stood statue still in front of the window watching every shadow that appeared with every flash of light. There was no way we would be able to get the jet off the ground in this weather and the dirt roads had already turned into a foot of mud. We were well and truly grounded.

I couldn't be like my father and lock everything inside and I couldn't distract myself with protecting someone else like Seth and Tyler, so I stood shifting from foot to foot wishing an Eraser _would _crash through a window just so I could have something I could fight.

I flexed my fingers and then balled my hands into fists, whipping my head back and forth with each bang against the house. We wouldn't be able to have an extra day in Seattle to set up due to the weather and it put my nerves on edge. I didn't like getting off to a bad start.

"What do we now?" I asked my father, who still hadn't looked away. It was like asking a general the next step of war.

"We wait," he answered. That's it. Two words! I silently growled in frustration.

Shane chuckled behind me and I whirled to see him leaning against the doorway to the kitchen not two feet away, smirking.

"Afraid of a little rain?" He teased.

I glared at him before stalking off into the kitchen, "You call this a little rain?" I hissed at him, venom dripping from my words.

Okay, so it wasn't his fault I was a ball of nerves and the sky decided to open up and gift us with the curse of Montezuma, but he was the only one I could take it out on and he was currently standing five feet from me.

Too bad he didn't look like my anger affected him much.

"We'll get there in time. Don't worry," he went from smug and cocky to serious and concerned in two seconds flat.

"I hate how you can do that." I told him, glaring as I paced back and forth as a crash of thunder shook the house. Seconds later the lights went out. I froze waiting for my eyes to adjust to the dark.

"Do what?" Shane asked from somewhere behind me.

"Change your emotions like that!" I told him. There was a deafening crack as a lightning bolt hit the plane hanger and I jumped back knocking a chair over and slamming into the island.

"You alright?" Seth called from the living room.

I felt my face flush in embarrassment, "Fine!"

Shane chuckled again before taking my hand, which I nearly broke before realizing it was him, and dragging me back to the living room where the candles were lit. Except for my father we all sat around the small flickering flames listening to the rain continue to hammer the house relentlessly.

I looked over at Lily to see her watching me with frightened eyes. I gave her a small smile, "Do you want me to sing to you?" I asked her gently. She nodded her head before jumping out of Seth's arms and into mine. I quickly gathered her close, cradling her head against my chest, and leaning down so my cheek rested on her golden hair.

I started singing a lullaby I found in a book a couple of years ago. I thought it fit perfectly for us at the moment.

_I wish you sunshine my dear one my dear one_

_And tree tops for you soar past _

_I wish innocence my dear one my dear one_

_I pray you don't grow up too fast_

_Never know pain my dear one my dear one_

_No hunger no fear no sorrow_

_Never know war my child my child_

_Remember your hope for tomorrow_

**Heads Up: I have at least five more chapters to go. Much love to all who have reviewed! I know where I'm going with this story and how it's going to end now! **


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer:**** Fang belongs to James Patterson and Seth belongs to Stephenie Meyer**

**Finally, the action returns!**

Seraphina's Song continued

My heart was racing so fast I could feel each beat against my chest rocking me back and forth. We had made it to Seattle earlier in the day and set apart gathering all our supplies and, now that everything was in place, we stood in a circle waiting for any last words of encouragement.

At least, I'm sure that's what Tyler, Lily, and Shane were waiting for, but Seth and I knew better. My father wouldn't treat this mission any differently. If he did it would put nerves far past the edge. We couldn't afford that tonight. I took a deep breathe and held it, glancing up at the sparkling sky as my father began.

"Does everyone know their assignments?" He waited a moment for everyone to nod their heads.

"Just remember we all have our mikes and earpieces, keep your eyes open, and be ready for anything," he commanded. There was a long stretch of silence and I didn't see the point of standing there any longer waiting for a meteor to fall out of the sky and hit us on the head.

"Come on," I ordered Shane. He nodded, taking my hand and just like the other night I was suddenly forty stories high over-looking the railroad tracks fifty blocks away.

"Be careful," Shane called out as I walked over and jumped onto the ledge. I sent him an award winning smile over my shoulder, "When have I ever been otherwise?" and before he could respond I stepped off allowing myself to free fall two stories before flaring out my wings and landing softly in the alley across the street.

I took off running until I was standing outside Angel's club. I gave the required password and was soon enveloped by darkness. I didn't worry though, I knew every twist and turn this place had. I quickly found myself amid a mass of bodies talking, dancing, and singing as the music blared. This would be the hard part.

I steeled myself against the growing panic and went in search of the owner himself. He was behind the 'bar' tonight serving drinks. Angel wasn't a very handsome fellow nor was he bad too look at. His mother was from Cuba and his father from Madrid so his Spanish heritage shown through his dark eyes and thick accent.

"Hola, chicka. Haven't see you around lately," Angel greeted me warmly. I gave him a genuine smile knowing I might not see him after tonight.

"Sorry about that. Something came up. Look, Angel, I'm gonna need my baby back," I told him apologetically.

"Awww…why you have to do that to me? Pop in and then 'Sayonara,' huh?" He was laughing by the end so I knew I was forgiven. Angel tossed me a key still attached to the necklace he just took from around his neck.

"Keep it," he ordered, walking backwards, "maybe you can come back and return it sometime," he suggested and before I knew it he was lost in the crowd of kids. I looked down at the silver cross in my hand, taken aback for a moment by the wave of emotion that hit me.

"Sera, get moving," Seth ordered. I snapped back to reality and weaved my way through the crowd until I was behind the stage and at the back exit. There were two halls after that and I took the one that led to the garage.

There she is! My baby. My blue Aprilia RST1000 Futura. I mumbled a little apology for leaving her here for so long before starting her up and pulling on my helmet. I had on my boots and leather pants just in cast. My shirt was plain old cotton I'm sure, but I had put on my leather jacket and gloves, too. Wouldn't want to crash and turn into spaghetti.

I grabbed my bag from off the floor and keyed the garage door to open, listening to my baby purr before tearing out of there. I was definitely burning rubber as I took off down the street. It was one thing to be flying up high where nothing can touch you but a completely different one to have obstacles to avoid and limits to break. I came so close to the ground as I turned the corners I almost took my face off. Criss-crossing in and out of traffic so fast I could have crashed at any moment. I loved every second of it.

"I can see the train," Shane warned, from his spot on top of the building.

"Got it," I answered, my time of fun over with for now. Quickly cut down the backstreets, skidding to a stop between two of the docks' abandoned warehouses.

"Sera, you ready?" my father asked.

"Just arrived," I exclaimed as I flew up and landed on top of one the roofs, "Alright, everybody in place?" I questioned, taking a stance at the edge, watching the train going sixty miles an hour come closer and closer. Everyone gave the affirmative, so I got to work stopping the six box car hunk of metal.

It's not as easy as it looks either. I had to account for the force it would take to push the train from the front without sending a solid wall of air at it. I had to lock the brakes, keep the wheels from jumping the track. It was a lot of work. Not that I'm complaining, I'd just thought I'd let you know.

Instantly, the scream of steel against steel could be heard along with the shower of sparks flying from the wheels. It felt like it took an hour for the train to shudder and groan as it came to a complete stop but according to the watch around my wrist, it only took twenty seconds. I grinned in anticipation of what was to come next. The end of this was so close I could taste it.

And then something happened that I wasn't prepared for.

It was like a weird transformation came over me in the minutes that passed as I watched, crouched like a gargoyle from Notre Dame on top of the roof, as Erasers piled out of the first three train cars. The horrors of the last sixteen years kept coming at me left and right. The grief on my fathers face when he thought I wasn't looking. The nightmares, the running. Everything was just building and building this fire inside me and tonight no longer felt like a night to set us all free, but a night for revenge.

Dark thoughts swirled through my head and I went deeper and deeper into instincts that made me less of a clumsy human and more of a predator. I was the night itself, a dark angel. My song for freedom twisted into chains wrapping tighter and tighter around my heart. The final clang resounding throughout my entire being as I found the monster who started this all.

Zachary.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"Everyone, go now!" My father yelled as he dropped from the sky right into the middle of the estranged wolf hybrids. I launched myself off the roof and quickly joined him. Seth and Shane coming from opposite sides with their game faces on and then my entire world became one punch after the next.

Breathe….Punch….Breathe….Twist….Breathe….Duck….Breathe….Kick….Breathe.

I didn't register any pain as I kept dropping Eraser after Eraser. And I was soon too caught up in the next connection of flesh against flesh, hearing the howls of pain and frustration. They couldn't touch me. I was invincible. I laughed and it came out as more of a snarl when two Erasers tackled me to the ground. I easily threw them off before flipping back up and taking them out with lighting kicks to their faces.

And then nothing. Silence.

I looked around and noticed that there were no more Erasers ready to attack. Standing at least. The red haze of hate I had been seeing was slowly dissipating and fear started taking its place. An evil chuckle started up along with the clapping of two very massive hands. I swiveled around to see Zachary standing among the carnage, an unusual figure behind him. He had this sadistic grin on his face and I took a step back, nearly tripping over one of the bodies. I didn't even know if it was unconscious or dead. What did I do?

I didn't see Seth, Shane, or my father anywhere and I prayed they weren't lying under one of the bodies. Or worse, captured.

"Very good!" Zachary enthused, making his way toward me, "So, we know what you're capable of when angry. It's interesting. I'm so very glad I had my little experiment back there project that specific emotion towards you. I always wondered how you would react. But I guess it's no surprise really," he commented studying me like I was a bug under a microscope, his voice like the sound of gravel grinding together.

I was frozen in place, too terrified to move, my voice the only thing able to work at this point, "What do you mean, projected that emotion?" I was proud of myself, my voice didn't even waver one bit. Points for me.

Zachary scoffed, "You think you could produce such an intense emotion without a catalyst? No, this was all my doing," he seemed very proud of the fact that he just lost his entire army of bodyguards.

"Oh, and that paralyzing fear you're feeling at the moment?" He smiled, knowing full well I was petrified, implying it was his doing as well.

"Too bad you need some freak experiment to make me scared of you," I taunted him. I mentally jumped up and down. So what if I'm scared to death? I could still taunt the enemy. Whoo hoo!

Zachary's smirk disappeared and I finally got to see a touch of malice mar his features. It helped to solidify him as truly evil instead of just some experiment gone bad. He took three large strides towards me, a gleam in his eye I could only define as bloodlust. I didn't even see the hit coming. I just knew everything went black.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Air. It was the first thing I noticed, the feeling of being surrounded by a lot of air. I felt the wind blow across my face and noticed the smell of salt. We must have still been on the docks. Or, at least, still on Eliot Bay. And then everything rushed back all at once and I tried to jerk up into a fighting stance but my hands were tied above my head. I was lying on something metal and very cold. The stars above me and the water below. I must've been a couple of stories high because I could see the cities lights from the buildings miles away.

Okay, Sera, it's alright. You're not afraid of heights and you're not dead. And… that's about as far as my optimism got me.

I banged my head back against whatever I was lying on in frustration. I couldn't believe I got captured! I wanted to scream for being so stupid. Oh well, not like I'm going to lay here and moan about it. I set to work trying to pull my hands free of the chains, wriggling them back and forth until my wrists started to bleed. But they didn't budge and that's when I did scream in frustration.

"Oh don't fret, little bird," Zachary spoke up all of a sudden as he climbed up onto the platform. I tensed as he stood over me with that smug smirk of his back on his face, "Daddy will be here in no time to save you," he said.

"What?!" I gasped. No…my father wouldn't dare do that to me. He knew I couldn't lose him too.

"Well, once I got you all nice and chained up, I sent a message out to your little computer nerd. I'll let you go if Fang gives himself up. You see, he's the brains behind your little gang and, frankly, I don't think you'd be able to function if he leaves," Zachary explained excitedly.

I gritted my teeth to keep the panic from showing, "He wouldn't. He won't let you win," I spat at him.

Zachary just kept smiling, "We'll see." I kept glaring at him. Wishing, for _once_, that I could have heat vision or something. That way I could burn that awful smirk right off his face.

"But in the mean time, I've been going over what you said back at the train and I've decided to prove you wrong," he told me as if just realizing he cracked a ten minute math problem.

The next thing I knew I was out of the chains and yanked upright. All the blood rushed out of my head and I blacked out for a moment as I felt Zachary shove me two one side of the platform. I barely stopped myself from going over the edge once my vision cleared and I watched the water below shimmer with the lights from the city. I was finally able to see that I was at the highest point of some metal tower jutting from the water. No idea what it was used for but at the moment I could have cared less.

I turned to stare at the monster who killed my mother and created all of those experiments over the years with narrow eyes. What was he doing? I could fly away easily. I could knock him off this thing with a surge of air. I didn't trust this at all. He looked way too confident.

"What are doing?" I asked suspiciously.

Zachary's smile slowly elongated into a vicious wolf grin as he chuckled, "Oh, little bird, now that the serum I gave you has made you groundless, not too mention nulled your powers, I am going to fight you," he answered simply.

"Guess I was just too powerful for you to fight without being drugged," I seethed, mostly out of terror. I had already tried to shove him off the side and into the bay without so much as a stumble and it made my blood run cold. I wasn't too worried about my wings. If what Zachary said was true than the serum would wear off. I could always jump into the bay as a last resort but it was a long way down and I didn't know if I would survive hitting the water at a wrong angle.

Zachary didn't grant my taunt with any of his own. He just lunged, claws extended, and the fight began.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

The platform was too small. I couldn't dodge far enough to get out of reach of Zachary's long arms. It resulted in multiple gashes in four's along my arms, back, face, legs…everywhere. There weren't fatal, but after the constant fighting it began to wear me down.

Zachary landed another teeth rattling crack across my jaw and I crashed against metal, the strength to move knocked out of me with the last of the air in my lungs escaping in a whoosh. Everything hurt. Everything hurt so much I didn't care if Zachary won or not. I just wanted to rest. I just wanted to sleep. The fight had been going on for two hours.

But Zachary wasn't finished. Not that I hadn't done any damage. He was limping and blood covered his face but he was still a lot stronger than me at the moment. I just concentrated on breathing in and out as he grabbed the back of my neck and dragged me into a half standing position in front of him.

I was like a rag doll to him. The only thing I could manage was a small amount of strength to get my feet back under me. I opened my eyes in time to focus on the figure that just landed with a metallic clang against the platform the wind blowing black hair out of enraged eyes.

I wanted to cry as my father stayed, frozen, crouched on one side of the platform while Zachary held me on the other but it would have taken to much strength to cry and so I just stared unbelievingly as my father slowly stood up to face the one creature he had been searching for my entire life.

"I'm here now. Let her go," my father ordered in a barely controlled voice of fury.

Zachary didn't even hesitate before throwing me towards my father only to yank me back by my arm and throwing me off the side. I tumbled through the air bracing myself just in time to crash into the freezing water.

**Mwhahahahaha….my laptop lives! And I completed this chapter in like two hours! Whoo hoo!!!!! Hope I didn't scare you guys too much. Well, first time at college tomorrow so expect a little more of a delay with the next part. Love all who review!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer:**** Fang belongs to James Patterson and Seth belongs to Stephenie Meyer.**

Seraphina's Song continued

The shock of the freezing water woke me up. Every gash screamed in pain from the salt for what seemed like forever but was slowly numbed. My fight or flight mode kicked as I realized I was sinking and the adrenaline that kicked in was enough to get me thinking again. I berated myself for getting weak. I was the daughter of two of the most strongest avian hybrids in the entire world!

I wasn't going to go down without fighting for every last breathe. I started kicking and pulling myself to where I thought the surface would be but I was too heavy and I kept sinking farther and farther down. I quickly ripped my leather jacket off and tore off my boots, letting them sink to the bottom without me. It was just enough to get me to the surface.

I pulled in a couple of deep breathes before I realized I was started to shake really bad. Great, first I was drowning and now I'm freezing to death. I searched for the closest thing to climb onto or even the shoreline but there was nothing but the metal tower Zachary had built. I saw now that it was attached to something, probably a cargo ship, and I started swimming as fast as I could towards the side. I needed to get out of the water fast. I wasn't known for body fat.

I risked glancing up, trying to see the platform where I had seen my father last with Zachary but nothing moved up there. I felt something solid collide with my hand and I realized I had made it to the metal tower. I pulled myself up and climbed until I was completely away from the freezing water only to have the wind blow hard against my cold body. Not really helping the freezing situation. I clung to one of the metal rungs unable to move anymore. Completely out of ideas as to how to get myself out of here.

I couldn't believe I had gotten into this situation in the first place. I was going to die of hyperthermia! Where was the justice in that? I was supposed to go out fighting tooth and nail. Or at least of old age.

My incredulous thinking was cut off by a very loud explosion from behind me. I turned my head to see that I had been right, it was a cargo ship, and apparently it was going to be a very sunken cargo ship in about ten minutes. The explosion must have been from inside because the deck still seemed moderately intact which gave the two figures fighting ferociously, the glow of the fire illuminating them from behind, a somewhat solid surface.

Zachary and my father.

An epic battle was taking place and all I could do was watch. Watch as they wrestled, threw, slammed, kicked, bit, punched. Each blow a weighted one and I winced as I saw my father get thrown back against the railing, cracking his head on the metal bar. He didn't get back up and Zachary took the opportunity to pick up his broken body and toss him overboard. I tried to scream with my hoarse voice as I watched him crash into the water but nothing came out.

But it got me moving again. I didn't even realize it at first that I had jumped across to the other side, ducking through the metal rungs, and dived back into the water until I had to start swimming again. I was grateful for the light the explosion from inside the cargo ship brought to the otherwise black water, it gave me the perfect amount to see my father's sinking form as I tried to swim farther and farther down. My lungs started burning as I tried to reach him but I pushed on.

I wasn't going to let him down, not now, not after everything. For a moment I thought I had lost him in the darkening water but then my hand brushed his and I grabbed on, hoping I had a hold of him. I couldn't really feel my fingers anymore. I aimed for the surface and kicked as I dragged us both back to the surface. Barely making it just as I was about to black out.

A blinding light came from out of nowhere and a deafening sound followed. It was disorienting as I tried to stay above the water all the while kicking desperately. I was able to figure out that it was a helicopter hovering over us and I realized reinforcements must have arrived. I mentally thanked the FBI for lending a hand at such short notice. Although, it may have been more to the fact that I left my bag containing incriminating evidence under one of their undercover operatives' cars when I was racing through the streets on my baby. But who was keeping track? They were here now.

Next thing I knew there was a sling on top of my head. I fumbled for it with one hand while trying to keep my father from sinking again. It took ages to get him strapped in, but when I finally did I signaled whoever was up there to pull him up and out. And then he was gone. I relaxed, my father was safe for the moment. The water covered my head again as all my strength disappeared. Instinctually, I called out for help as I've always done when I physically couldn't speak, forgetting about the drug Zachary gave me. And then strong arms were wrapping around my stomach and I was once again on the surface gulping in salty air.

"Hold on, Sera. I've got you," Shane's strong voice commanded.

It was a confusing thing to say, for I wasn't holding onto anything and the panic in Shane's voice was lost as I was once more swept away by darkness.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

I awoke to find Shane leaning over me, a worried expression on his face. At the sight of my eyes opening his head drooped to his chest and he let out a small sigh before looking back up.

"What happened?" and whoa when did I become a frog?

"A lot," was all Shane said before looking up at someone behind me, or should I say above my head? Whichever, I couldn't see who it was, but Shane didn't look tense, worried, or spit fire mad so I figured it was okay.

"NO!" Shane screamed and my eyes shot open as I tried to sit up ready to fight.

Apparently, Shane was yelling at me and he pushed me back down until I was resting against the ground again.

"What?!" I asked irritated and panicked, my voice scratchy and rough. He seemed to swallow his panic, realizing he shouldn't have yelled in the first place.

"You just can't close your eyes again, okay? Don't go to sleep. At least, not yet," he pleaded and I realized I was probably hurt pretty badly for him to react that way. Which led me to thinking how bad my father was. He must have seen the look on my face because he immediately looked away, avoiding my gaze. Not the response I was looking for.

"Shane, my father, where is he?" I asked slowly, my voice going in and out.

He hesitated before answering, "The FBI team got him out of there in time. They've still got him."

"Is he okay?" I asked.

"He's alive," Shane relented. I waited for him to say more and I was about to get up and strangle the information from him when Seth's voice called out, postponing Shane's inevitable death.

"Shane, you got her?" he asked. Shane nodded before gently picking me up bridal style. Usually, I wouldn't allow anybody to carry me this way, or any way, but I found that I barely had the strength to complain let alone move, so I relented just this once.

We were still by Eliot Bay but this time it was among the park, not the docks. Tyler and Lily must be waiting for us by our back up/emergency get away cars. I found myself drifting off again and felt a twinge of guilt for not trying to stay awake.

_If you want me to keep my eyes open for much longer, you're going to have to start talking about something. _Hey, my powers had returned. Awesome!

I felt Shane jump and tense the moment I started talking to him without speaking. He shook his head back and forth a bit, trying to get over the alien feeling of someone else in his head before glancing down at me. I tried to stare back, waiting as my eyes got heavier and heavier.

_What happened? _I urged him.

"After the fight started, we quickly realized something had happened to you. You easily took out over half of the Erasers and didn't look like you would be stopping any time soon. You're father ordered us to retreat and watch how it would play out, to figure out what had happened to you," he informed me quietly.

Seth joined in from somewhere ahead of us, "It took you're father and I to hold that kid back from ripping Zachary apart when he knocked you out. Not that I didn't want to run in and save you myself, chickaree."

I smiled, picturing the three of them wrestling together. The thought of them so worried about me was a weird feeling, but the last four hours had been exhausting and it didn't last long.

Shane took it from there again, "Zachary's message went through soon after that and we came up with a plan that should have worked if Zachary hadn't decided to throw you into the bay. Tyler, Seth, and I managed to infiltrate the cargo ship and plant the bomb. Then the FBI showed up just in time to see the end of the show. You can probably figure out the rest from there," he finished.

I could. Zachary and my father's fight on the ship, the explosion, the chaos,_ What happened to Zachary? And the formulas? _I asked, if we had just gone through that all for nothing…

"We destroyed ever bit of information in Zachary's possession, it's over. But Zachary disappeared, we don't know if he died when the rest of the ship exploded or if he got away," Tyler piped up. We must have reached the car then.

_Where are we going?_ I asked.

"To the hospital," Shane answered.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

I couldn't believe it. My father was in a coma.

My father was in a coma.

My father was in a coma.

My father was in a coma.

My father- "Sera!"

I snapped from my shocked internal rambling to see Shane gripping my shoulders and shaking me back and forth. I went to shove him away only to find he had already let go. How could this be happening? My father was the strongest person I've ever known. How could he be in a coma? How could he not wake up?!

We had been in the hospital for eight hours before anyone would tell us anything. I had been treated to and was lying in my own room with the constant beeping of the heart monitor. Shane had become my guardian, keeping me company, and saving the nurses whenever I freaked out every time they tried to give me a shot.

The doctor had just informed us five minutes ago that the blow to my father's head had given him a concussion severe enough to induce a coma. Everything blurred after that. My father was in a coma.

He left me here! He was going to leave me here, forever! I panicked, struggling to get out of the hospital bed, ripping patches and needles out of my skin as Shane fought to keep me still. I was yelling and he was yelling and then there were nurses and doctors yelling to be heard and then everything started swimming around in circles until I was once again lost to the black oblivion of unconsciousness. It seemed the only way I could escape the pain.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

"Where are you going?" Seth asked me worriedly as Shane and I walked out of the hospital doors the next day.

"Seattle. My father left something there for me and I'm going to get it," I told him as I stared straight ahead. It was taking all my strength not to break down again. I'm sure I looked like a statue, my face blank and my posture ramrod straight. I didn't care.

Seth didn't say anything more, he just watched us go. Someone had retrieved my motorcycle and I got on, kicking the stand up and waiting for Shane to get situated before turning it on and peeling out of the parking lot. It was a two hour ride made in silence except for the wind blowing and the rush of cars on the highway.

When I finally pulled into the bank's parking I was nervous about what I would find inside. I stood there looking at the glass double doors and wondered if I'd be forever changed once I walked out.

I could feel Shane standing beside me waiting patiently and I looked over at him, wondering if he thought I was unstable, why he was here, if he cared. Shining emerald eyes stared back and what I saw there gave me all the strength in the world to keep moving forward.

"Are you ready?" he asked. He didn't hold out his hand, he didn't raise his voice above a whisper. He knew I needed to be the one to lead the way on this mission. That I needed to make the decisions at every turn and I think I fell a little in love with him in that moment. I nodded before making my way purposefully towards the bank doors. My father had told me about the safety deposit box for a reason. As if he knew I would be needing it soon and I wasn't going to let him down. Not ever.

"May I help you?" I froze and looked over to see a man in a fancy suit and pink tie standing behind one of the desks. I walked over slowly, going over where the exits were out of habit before finally giving him my full attention, satisfied there wasn't anybody who looked like they were about to rob the place. It would be just my luck.

"Yes, I need to open my safety deposit box," I answered as if I knew what I was doing. Which I totally didn't.

"Very good, right this way," the man said as he got up and led us towards the stairs and to an underground floor. I had to fill out a form first, signing my name, or at least my mother's signature since it was under her name, before giving the password. I knew Shane was watching me, wondering if I knew it or not, but I didn't doubt for a moment as I answered.

"Seraphim"

The man didn't even nod in acknowledgment before turning to the guard in front of the vault and opening the door. He gave us the key and instructed us on how to open the box before leaving Shane and I alone inside. I scanned the walls for the correct number and walked over. It was high enough that I could stand in front and press my nose against the handle. Not that I did that of course, I just stared, bracing myself for what I would find inside.

"How did you know the password?" Shane asked from beside me.

I shrugged, "It's obvious. My father made sure he kept whatever is inside safe so that I could have it one day. It was meant for me."

There was a pause, "I still don't get it," he admitted.

I looked over at him with a blank stare, waiting, and then realization dawned in his eyes, "Oh"

I shook my head almost managing a smile. I quickly took advantage of my lighter mood to put the key in and unlock the cover, pulling the box out quickly, and setting it on the table. Just like ripping off a band-aid I didn't even let myself think as I pulled the cover off and looked inside. There was a package. Great, one more thing to nervously open.

Shane chuckled. Guess I must've said that last part out loud.

I ripped the top off and looked inside. There was a piece of paper and several disks, they looked more like CD's. I pulled the note out first, recognizing my father's hand writing right away.

_Sera, I don't want you to be afraid of what is on the videos. Trust me, they are the answers you've always wanted. Please forgive me from keeping them from you all these years. It was selfish of me but I couldn't bear watching them again. It hurt too much. I hope they make you happy. With all the love in the world, Your father_

"Time to go back now?" Shane asked, assuming I would want to wait until we were back at the hospital with Seth to watch them.

"No," I answered, shocking him, "No, I don't think he knows about these yet. I want to see what is on them first."

"Okay, we'll find a hotel. You can watch it in the room, away from everyone else," he suggested.

I just nodded absently, not caring where we went, as long as I got there. I had waited sixteen years for answers and now I held them in the palms of my hands.

**Alright, I have no idea how it works getting into a safety deposit box so everything was made up from what I've seen in various movies. Hope you enjoyed!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: ****Fang belongs to James Patterson and Seth belongs to Stephenie Meyer.**

**Sorry for the unusual wait from me. College and all that.**

Seraphina's song continued

Half an hour later, I found myself sitting on the edge of a king sized bed in a hotel staring at a black t-v screen. Shane was setting up the DVD player and looking for the correct channel while I waited, frozen. The screen flickered blue and then I was watching as the screen wobbled from side to side.

"_How do you get this thing turned on?" _a familiar voice emanated from the video.

"_It _is _turned on. Jeez, you would think a genetically engineered hybrid genius could figure something as simple as a video camera out,"_ chuckled a different voice.

"_Bite me, Sam," _my father spat back. I was slightly bewildered by their care-free bantering. Usually they didn't talk as much to each other.

"_Just point that thing and start documenting,"_ the deeper voice, Sam, ordered.

The screen went from a view of grass and a pair of black shoes to that of what looked like a backyard with woods further on. And then the most beautiful woman was walking out the black door of the house. I immediately knew she was my mother. Her hair glowed like a halo around her head and her wings made her look like an angel, but it was her eyes that caught your attention. The fire in them, the love, the _life._

"_Fang, what are you doing?" _my mother asked with an incredulous look on her face even when her voice was full of love.

"_Making sure we have every single memory documented so we can watch everything over and over again,"_ I couldn't believe it. My father sounded like a man totally besotted, reduced to cheesy fatherly actions that always made them more endearing and heroic.

The camera jostled as my father walked over to my mother and I finally saw that she was holding a small bundle wrapped in a blanket. And then my face was filling the screen.

"_There she is," _my father cooed, _"our little Seraphina."_

My mother chuckled warmly, rocking me back and forth, and my heart throbbed realizing I could never remember her touch or voice…until now.

I was lost for a moment as memories started to flood back, pieces started to fit together and then different voices echoed from farther away and I watched as my father pointed the camera at a group coming out of the woods. There were two different groups, I realized as they got closer. Eight of them were pale and stayed to one side while the other six were a darker complexion and muscular. I immediately recognized Seth in this group and wondered if that was the rest of his family.

The shorter of the pale figures with a short black hair skipped across the yard faster than all the others and presented my mother with a pick blanket, "_Esme knitted this for her when we got word she was coming."_ Her voice was like bells and I was mesmerized by the gold color of her eyes. They were the prominent feature on all of the pale figures and I wondered what they were, they couldn't have been human.

"_Thank you, Alice." _my mother smiled as she took the blanket and wrapped that one around me too.

"_You should be able to move into your house tomorrow. The paint still has to dry," _the larger and more muscular of the pale figures boomed. He had his arm wrapped around a beautiful blonde woman who was staring, eyes shining, as my balled fist waved in the air.

"_Thank you, all of you. I don't know what we would have done without your help and protection,"_ my father sincerely told them.

"_We'd do anything for you now, you're family," _Seth spoke up. The screen filled with static then before another segment started. I watched every single disk until night had fallen and tears ran down my face.

They had documented my entire life since I was born up until that black, black, day. I watched my first steps as my mother cheered. I watched as we played hide and seek. I watched as I ambushed Seth from the top of the roof. I watched as my father caught me when my first attempt to fly failed. I watched as the Cullen's continually coached me and spoiled me as if I was one of their own. I watched as the Pack protected me at every turn. And I watched as my father never stopped smiling.

"Sera?" Shane whispered and I realized at some point, he must have put his arm around my shoulders and pulled me toward him so that I rested against his chest, his shirt soaking up my tears.

"Yea?" I breathed back.

"What do you want to do?" he asked and I knew he would be with me whichever way I choose to go.

"We're going back," I answered.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

"We're what?!" Seth yelled.

"We're going back. Don't try arguing with me, Seth, I've made up my mind. I thought you'd be happy?" I told him as we stood facing each other in the waiting room. Tyler was holding Lily in one of the plastic chairs as nurses and patients walked around us. Shane had taken up position behind me on my right. I think he was trying to tell them he was on my side on this.

"Sera-" Seth seemed to be having a hard time trying to get the words out. I knew he must have some very strong conflicting feelings about this so I allowed him some time to work them out.

"It's been a very long time," he finally managed to choke out and I briefly wondered if he was trying not to cry.

"I know, but it's time to go back. I want to. Besides, my father needs the best medical attention there is and correct me if I'm wrong but Dr. Cullen's been around for a while." I told him, trying to put a little persuasive action in there. It might help ease his mind on the whole thing.

"We don't even know if the Cullen's are still there. They could have moved on," Seth warned. I could see he didn't want me getting my hopes up anymore than they already had.

"I'm aware of that, but Jake is still in contact with the Pack. He has to be," I didn't know this for sure but it was a reasonable conclusion. His imprint with Renesmee would keep him with the Cullen's while his draw to the Pack would keep him in contact with them.

Seth took a deep breathe, holding it in for a very long time. I glanced over at Tyler to see him with a hesitant look on his face.

"Tyler?" I called over. He looked up and saw me staring at him, "What?"

"Do you want to go too?" I asked. I felt guilty for speaking as if we were all going to go no matter what.

Tyler looked between Seth and I before looking me in the eye, a resolved mask hardening his face, "Yes, I want to go. They can help protect Lily better than I ever could."

My heart swelled with so much love for that boy. He was always thinking about Lily, never himself. I looked back at Seth to see his head bowed to his chest, his hands on his hips, and I knew he wouldn't argue about this anymore. Whether he would come or not was yet to be decided.

"Seth, please come with us," I begged him quietly. He heaved a sigh before slowly raising his head, a gentle look in his eyes.

"You know I will always be with you, little chickaree," he whispered. I finally breathed again. The even remote chance that Seth wouldn't come had had me in a near panic.

"Alright," Seth started, looking like his normal self again and taking charge, "everyone get whatever you want to take from the safe house here. We can always get the rest of our stuff from the ranch later. I'll go and talk to the doctors about transferring Fang to the hospital in Forks."

I nodded, glad that Seth was getting things in motion quickly. If we hurried we could be there by nightfall.

And we did. By nine o'clock we were back in the hospital waiting but this time in Forks, Washington. My father was in a private room on the third floor hooked up to so many machines it made my heart ache just looking at him. After the initial check-in we were aloud in his room and since we were all listed as family we were able to stay for as long as we wanted. Tyler immediately made Lily a make shift bed away from the window and they both crashed, exhausted from the battle a couple of nights before and the constant waiting and moving that had happened since then.

Seth had taken watch beside the window and I walked over to stand beside him, noticing for the first time that Forks had a clear sky with the full moon shining brightly down on its still glistening streets.

"Are you mad at me?" I asked him.

"Never," he answered after a pause, "I'm more afraid at what's changed since I've been gone. If they'll still accept me," he confessed.

I didn't know how to respond to that or how to give him comfort so I just took his hand and leaned my head against his shoulder for awhile.

"I've had a little talk with Shane," he announced suddenly and I felt my forehead crease in confusion.

"What about?" I asked.

"I told him if he ever hurt you that I'd burn him alive," he stated very matter-of-factly.

I probably looked like a fish out of water as Seth just continued to stare out the window, his face turned away from me, "What?!"

And then he made the mistake of looking over at me and bursting into laughter. I didn't find it so hilarious and demonstrated it by smacking him upside the head, "Dork."

It only seemed to make him laugh harder and I left him slumped against the wall holding his sides as tears streamed down his face. How immature!

_**Okay guys so completely sorry for the long wait and the extra short chapter but it's been hectic! I decided to upload it because the wait was getting too long and I've been having trouble figuring out how I want it to end. Any requests?**_


	10. update

**I apologize everyone. I realized I kinda left you guys hanging for about two to three weeks now without the last chapter. Which, by the way, has yet to be written. Got caught up in first year of college and my muse left for different venues of learning and creativity. I promise I will sit down this weekend (hey, or maybe tomorrow) and dredge up my last thoughts and love for Seraphina's Song. Whether or not there will be sequels is yet to be determined. (Anyone who wants to adopt has my full permission. I just want to read it first! Not to criticize, just for fun)**

**Sincerely,**

**Brittney**


	11. Chapter 10

_Disclaimer: __Fang belongs to James Patterson and Pack/Cullen's belong to Stephenie Meyer._

_Sorry for the wait again guys. I'm a stickler for quick updates and I can't believe I let myself get away with this for so long. _

_This may not be the kind of ending everyone will enjoy but it was really the only way I could make all of my characters truly happy._

_Hope you like it_

Seraphina's Song continued

I can't believe we're doing this. I mean, it _was_ the right decision, we could use their help. Not too mention we could use their protection, but I didn't think I would be able to get through the emotional parts of this. One look at Seth's face had my stomach twisting in panic. What if they didn't want to take him back? What if they weren't even there? We had decided to leave Shane, Lily, and Tyler back at the hospital. This was something Seth and I had to do together. I kept running through all of the bad endings and disappointing turnouts until I realized something that made me reconsider my entire outlook on life.

Like a lightening bolt. An epiphany.

My mother never let anything bring her down. She was the ultimate fighter, lover, mother, friend, protector. My Maximum Mom. I smiled and it was the smile of victory. For I had just won over every fear I had ever had with that one break through. I straightened and started to walk with a purpose like no one could stop me now. I was going to make my mother proud of me. I would protect the one's I loved with every last breathe. I would live my life. No one could take my free will away.

"Why do I feel like you just grew up way too fast?" Seth asked softly beside me.

I smiled, "I thought I was already all grown up?"

"Maybe, but you were still a kid in many ways. I don't think you'll be as carefree as you were three weeks ago," he admitted.

"I learned from all of those experiences, but I never applied what they meant to the way I lived my life. Everything was about protecting my family from the next attack or getting revenge on the next mission. Now," I paused, lifting my eyes to the sun streaming through the leaves, "now I'm going to live the life my mother would have wanted for me. A strong one."

Seth seemed to take with quiet acceptance and we continued to walk through the forest in silence for the moment, soaking up the atmosphere around us. I, with my newfound peace, and Seth, who's thoughts were kept to himself. He stopped, lifting his face to the soft breeze, and closing his eyes. I tried not to make a sound as he listened to the surrounding forest, waiting for him to give me any signal to run, or fight, or break out in song and dance.

"I'll phase here," he spoke out of nowhere and I quickly turned my back to give him some privacy as he pulled off the jeans he had been wearing.

"Why here?" I asked.

"Their close, but I don't think the wind has blown our scent in their direction yet. I want to be prepared for them when it does," he answered mildly and only I could have detected the hint of apprehension.

I didn't fully understand what he meant by being prepared. What did he think they'll do when they smell us on their land? Should we be ready to fight or fly? My concerns only lay in the fact that I didn't feel comfortable fighting Seth's long ago Pack. It just seemed wrong somehow. Like fighting your own family.

Seth nudged the back of my head with his nose and tossed his head in a 'come on' gesture. I liked walking next to this giant wolf whose presence still screamed 'Seth' to me, even if he couldn't speak to me anymore. It didn't take long after he had phased for the first howl to tear through the air. I guess we're about to meet the rest of the Pack. I looked over at Seth as he whined, pawing at the ground and looking back and forth through the trees as more howls surrounded us from all sides.

They came silently. It reminded me of mist floating over the ground because they didn't seem as noisy as their size indicated. Of course, they were all in wolf form, having smelled another wolf in the area. I stayed farther back behind Seth and allowed him this reunion with some sort of privacy. I don't think he remembered I was there as he watched them draw closer, forming a half circle around us. Not one of them made a single movement for a very long time…and then the black wolf lifted his head to the sky and howled. The sound was one of rejoicing and I smiled as the rest of them joined in until it was a symphony of cries. It was a beautiful sight, an entire pack welcoming home their lone wolf and I knew Seth was happy to be home where he belonged.

I made a move to pat Seth's shoulder and the first wolf to notice me gave a yelp of surprise and jumped back, crashing into a tree and sending it breaking in half. I let myself watch them as they all turned shocked eyes towards me and I tried not to laugh. Seth shook his head back and forth and I wondered which questions he was answering.

"You think we could move this reunion somewhere I could join in on the conversation? I'd like to meet their human faces if you wouldn't mind," I asked Seth when the silence was getting too much for me to take. Seth nodded his head and I slapped a hand over my eyes as he phased back.

"It's safe now," he told me and I opened my eyes to see that they had all phased back and were now a pack of humans rather than giant wolves. Seth had this huge grin on his face that mirrored many of the others. I picked Sam out of the group, he still looked the same if not a little bit older rather than sixteen years older. He was watching me with a dozen emotions crossing his face, confusion, excitement, wariness.

"Guys," Seth called to get everyone's attention, "this is Sera. She's decided to come home."

And then tt finally started to sink in when Sam gave me an equal smile of welcome that I _had_ made the right choice. Finally, home was going to be more than a safe house in the middle of nowhere. It was going to be with the people surrounding us.

"What about the Cullen's? Are they still here, too?" I asked as I felt them getting ready to leave and take us back to the reservation.

Sam was the one to answer me and while he still looked happy there was a tint of sadness around the corners of his mouth, "They moved on. We haven't heard from them in sixteen years."

Seth looked surprised before his face fell in disappointment. I knew from the videos that he had been close to Edward and Bella. I was disappointed too. Carlisle wouldn't be able to help my father. I had just transferred him all the way out to Forks hospital for nothing.

"They gave me a number though. I'll call them and tell them you're here if you want?" Sam asked.

"My father's in a coma, we need their help," I pleaded.

Sam's face was on of shock, "What happened? How is he in a coma?"

"Zachary," was all Seth said and it became clear to them that we weren't just back to say hello, we were going to need their help too.

Sam nodded his head, "Just like old times."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Hey, Shane, could you pass the potatoes?"

We were spread around Sam's house eating the most delicious meal made by his wife, Emily, who fought off all the other members of the Pack until we were able to get our fair share. I liked her. Lily did too. They had gotten here just before dinner and were immediately captivated by the large Pack crammed in the small house. There had been a constant buzz of conversation as Seth caught up with his family and the Pack listened to our stories from our missions over the years. I let Lily and Tyler do most of the talking and just watched the interactions take place. I think this may be the first time I had every truly felt safe and relaxed. An entire wolf Pack was between me and the outside world, nothing could touch me. Too bad I had to get out of my chair and head for the backdoor.

_Need to fly around for awhile. I'll be back, _I told Shane without turning around. I made it out of the backdoor and since everyone in the house was familiar with the freakier side of reality, I spread my wings, took a running start, and launched myself into the sky. The sun was setting and casting out colors of red, pink, gold, purple, and finally dark blue. It was beautiful and peaceful at this time of the day/night. Like time stops and allows the world to watch such a spectacular miracle. When the angels paint the sky again and bring the stars back, I thought dreamily.

I made slow, lazy swoops and arcs, allowing the cool breeze run through my hair and across my face. I found a rockier part of the mountain that gave a clear view of the sky above and perched gracefully on the very top. I needed time to think about my new outlook on life. Well, maybe not think, just breathe in, I guess. Enjoy the feeling of such sureness in life. The strength it had.

I wonder when my mother decided she was going to be the strong one. It was a choice, that was for sure, but it seemed like such a monumental choice. The expectations she must have set for herself, knowing once she defied the men who were making her life miserable that it would just get worse. But she did it anyway. Because she believed in freedom. The freedom of choosing your own path and loving that path every step of the way. I think that's what made her so special to my father and why it broke him to lose her. It was like losing the sun for him.

The last rays of light disappeared and I realized as the coolness of the night washed over me that my face was wet from crying. I wiped the tears away slowly, not ashamed of them. They were tears for someone I loved.

Which turned my thoughts toward another someone I loved. What was going to become of us now? I was done fighting, that much I was sure of, but was he? It made me nervous to think he might decide to go out on his own, looking for the revenge he had claimed he needed when we first met. I wouldn't blame him if he did, for I was being purely selfish in wanting him to stay. I wanted him with me. I had admitted things to him about me that I had never admitted to anyone before. It was like I gave him the key to the door I set in front of myself and it was slightly terrifying thinking he might throw that key down the sewer.

Great, now I don't want to be out here…all by myself…in the dark…on the side of a mountain…looking at the stars. I wanted him beside me looking up at the stars, too.

I unfolded myself from my position on the still warm boulder and re-launched myself in the air, this time skimming the tops of the trees instead of soaring closer towards the clouds. I was focused on scanning the ground ahead of me and didn't miss it when a white blur streaked ahead among the forest trees. I tensed, nothing could have run that fast for my eyes not to catch it!

I quickly angled myself to gain altitude in case it was something sent by Zachary earlier on and hadn't gotten the memo to abort. Yea, as if, Sera, you keep telling yourself that. I waited, holding myself upright and looking for another glimpse of the thing as I counted the seconds off in my head, listening.

"SERA?!" I didn't think it was possible for my heart to stop in fright but I swear it did as the voice from below screamed up at me. Adrenaline had been pumped through my body so fast I felt like I had just gulped down ten cans of Monster. I looked down to see that I was above the edge of a very big clearing with eight pale faces gazing up at me.

The Cullen's had arrived.

"It is you!" squealed the smallest of the family and I remembered watching her dance her way towards my mother with a babies blanket in her arms.

"Alice," I greeted her, slightly out of breath.

She beamed at me, "Come on down from there! I want to give you a hug," she ordered. I cautiously allowed myself to sink to the ground. Of course, my mother and father had been friends with the Cullen's and they had taken care of me, but I didn't know them. It was like meeting a family of strangers. A vampire family of strangers, at that.

Alice, Esme, Rosalie, and Bella were all of a sudden giving me the biggest hug I'd ever received and I awkwardly patted someone's back. Emmett didn't even hesitate in picking me off the ground and swinging me in a circle as his arms crushed me to his chest when the finally released me. It was so unexpected that I managed a laugh. Jasper just nodded his head but he was smiling and I understood why he kept his distance. Edward had his arms wrapped around Bella again and he too just smiled and nodded. I wondered if he could read my thoughts even when I was slightly telepathic, too. He nodded and I threw up a barrier before asking him again. The look on his face was priceless.

"Not you too!" He groaned and everyone laughed as Bella raised her hand to rest against his cheek.

I turned towards Carlisle, "It is delightful to see you again, Seraphina. To see how you've grown into an amazing woman is extraordinary. Sam told me about your father. I'll be able to look at him tonight if that is okay with you."

I nodded, the lump in my throat all of sudden stealing away my moment to thank him, but he seemed to understand as he wrapped me in his arms, "Welcome home, dear."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

It's not surprising the Cullen's wanted to build yet another house for us. The only difference would be that this time there would be two. One smaller one closer to the sea and the Pack, and a larger one closer to the Cullen's in the middle of the forest. By the look in Alice's eyes when she announced this I had a suspicion she had a particular reason for wanting two houses but I didn't pressure her on it. Yet. I was still building my relationships with the two families again. It was strange knowing they knew my mother and father and how they protected us when I was so little, but there was really nothing I could do about that. I would just have to rebuild those relationships.

Seth was once again smothered in a family and he loved every minute of it. Especially, when he was on patrol and got to share his thoughts once again with his pack brothers. I was amazed at the change that overtook him. He was so happy all of the time and in quiet moments to myself I felt guilty for taking him away from that before.

Lily was enraptured by Alice and Rosalie. They treated her like a princess wherever she went, but I think it was the fact that Lily's talent was similar to Alice's that she couldn't pull herself away from the little pixie woman. Tyler still rarely let her out of the same room without knowing where she was and who she was with, but Jasper and Emmett were slowly getting him to be apart of some of their games. I was grateful to them, he needed the chance to have some fun every now and them.

Carlisle had moved my father into a remodeled extension of their house and either Edward or him was constantly watching over my father. They discussed different medicines and techniques other than waiting to see if they could bring him out of it. The unknowable was too risky when it came down to it and so I was stuck between worrying and hoping they would finally do something after week number two had passed and our new homes were finally perfectly refurnished, according to Alice.

Shane never left my side, unless I was flying at night, but we hadn't talked about what he wanted to do yet and on top of agonizing over my father's condition and obsessing over talking with him it was taking its toll on my fragile emotional health.

"I'll be back in an hour," I told him the day Alice had deemed us officially moved in.

"I'll be here," he answered me, just like he had every other time I told him I was going to fly.

I froze right where I was standing ready to run and jump into the air. Another lightening bolt having struck me. I had never made the connection before. My back was turned away from him and I was staring blankly at the forest in front of me. He was silent now as I finally realized what he had been saying. I had always told him I was going to leave and come back while he always told me he would be there waiting for me.

I slowly turned to look at him, his emerald eyes shining as he watched me figure it out. He was sitting on top of the porch railing, leaning against the post that led up to the portcullis. He smiled and I wanted to smack myself on the back of the head for not seeing it before. He was giving me the same promise I was giving him when I said that I would return. I grinned and decided to do something impulsive for once. I took the two steps that brought me right up to him, took his face between both of my hands, and kissed him.

When I felt him start to unfold his arms I jumped back, gave him another grin, and used the porch step to push off of and flap my wings as hard as I could. I held his gaze from thirty feet in the air before turning and soaring higher. This time, when I flew through the air, I was no longer stuck in my head, I was experiencing the rush as I dove towards the ground and twisted through the air, smiling as I went. I wasn't paying attention to what was going on around me, just drowning in the waves of pleasure I had going. It didn't really register that I was falling until the sense that I was no longer flying forward broke through my senses. I opened my eyes just as the pain shot like a white hot branding iron through my arm and wing. I crashed through the trees and tried in vain to grab a hold of one of the branches. All I got for my attempts was more bruises and cuts right before I landed with a teeth rattling crash into the ground.

I lay there, the breath knocked out of me, watching the leaves and twigs ripped off of their respective trees float down around me, wondering what had just happened. One minute I'm high as a bird and the next I had been shot. It was the only logical conclusion as nothing larger than a bullet rammed into me, causing my backward flip in the air, and subsequent falling to the ground. I would have at least notice that much. I gritted my teeth together and, ignoring the roaring in my head, rolled to my non-injured side, bringing myself into a standing position. It was harder than I thought to raise my head and when I finally managed it I wished I hadn't.

"Hello, Sera," Zachary crooned from his place five feet away from me. A black sniper resting in a hand dangling by his side.

"How?" I growled in confusion and fury. I thought he was dead? Why couldn't he leave me alone?!

"You were too busy saving poor old dad from drowning. I guess you missed my escape," he commented. He wasn't pretending to be the humored villain anymore. All I saw in his eyes was anger, disgust, and bloodlust. I knew I couldn't be far from the Cullen's or the Pack, so I did the only thing I could do that would at least give me a chance to see Shane's face again.

I screamed as loud as I could, physically and mentally, just like I had the last time I was powerless against Zachary.

_SHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANE!!!!!!!_

_Shane's Pov_

I smiled as Tyler played flag football with Seth, Emmett, and Jasper. He really was a good kid. Esme and Emily had both worked on putting together a cook-out for the Pack, the Cullen's, and our small miscellaneous group for later this evening and everyone was currently situated in some fashion in the backyard. It was quite the spectacle to see vampires, werewolves, and genetic-mutant hybrids all mingling together. It amazed me to think that not too long ago, I had been sitting in a cage preparing myself to fight to the death when Sera found me. Now, I was here. Free and happy with an entire extended family who was ready and able to protect us against anything. I caught Edward's knowing smile from across the yard and frowned. Some things would take getting used to, but I was willing to try. There was really no reason in the world that could tear me from this spot right here, right in this position on a wooden perch where I waited for Sera to return to me.

But the explosion knocked me off of the railing and onto the porch, away from my promise. I lay there stunned for a second as the echoes of Sera's scream in my head finally caught up to my ears…and then I was up like a shot, the first one racing through the forest. I fell behind Edward as he raced ahead all of us and I followed him as he tracked Sera. Fear had sent shots of adrenaline running through my veins and it felt like my heart would explode as I kept picturing what we would find when we finally reached her. Oh, please let her be okay. Please let her be okay. Please let her be okay. Please let-

I nearly ran into Edward, not noticing he had stopped and I stumbled to a halt beside him. Everyone froze behind us as the scene in front of us finally registered. There she was, my Sera, standing alone, surrounded only by the trees, and it took me a moment to realize her face was a mask of terror and dread. She was shaking and I saw blood dripping from her arm. I took a step to run to her but Edwards arm shot out to hold me back. That's when I looked more closely. She was gripping something in her hand. The one on her injured arm. I gasped. I had seen these things back at the school and I looked around wildly for the charges that would inevitably be hidden. If Sera twitched one finger on that device it would send the signal to the other devices and I had a feeling the entire forest would be on fire in a matter of seconds.

No, this couldn't be happening. Not to her. No no no no no no……

"Sera," I whispered and Seth's whine echoed the tortured tone of my voice. She looked at me and her voice suddenly filled my head.

_You need to teleport me away from the forest, Shane. The charge won't be able to send a signal if it's too far away._ She ordered urgently, her eyes never leaving mine, pleading.

Edward must have overheard the exchange as he let his arm drop, allowing me to cautiously walk forward freely. If I stepped on one of the explosives I could set it off and I kept glancing between watching Sera's face and the ground. I was halfway there when what felt like a boulder smashed into me from behind. I hit the ground trying to catch my breath as Edward apologized quietly.

"I can hear his thoughts, but they do not pinpoint his location. His scent is everywhere. He was about to shoot you," he explained.

"Thanks," I mumbled absently as I tried to find Sera again as everyone in the Pack but Seth disappeared. They wouldn't be as impervious to bullets as the Cullen's. I didn't blame them. If Zachary was alone there were enough of us to take him out. I was tired of him ruining our lives and I let the fire in my veins burn slowly until my skin was now the black shine of scales. I was able to move faster in this form, not too mention my senses were amplified.

"I need to get to Sera," I emphasized to Edward who still held me down.

"We don't know where Zachary is," he protested.

"Why hasn't he taken Sera out and blown us to pieces yet?" I asked.

"He wants Fang to be here. He doesn't know that Fang is in a coma. He's waiting," Edward explained.

"You have to let go of me if you don't want to be transported with us," I told him. Either way, if he didn't let go of me I was leaving in three seconds. He moved so that I was clear of him and I quickly focused on the space right next to where Sera was standing and then her face was in front of mine. I had her wrapped in my arms before she could blink.

This was the hard part. Transporting so fast that we would be fifty miles from here in two seconds without killing either of us in the process.

No time to think, Shane, just go. Feel your way through this.

_Sera's Pov_

I think, for the first time in three weeks, I was glad my father was incapacitated. All Zachary wanted was him and for the first time my father couldn't go charging in to save the day and die for his heroics. Even if this situation meant everyone else I cared about was standing ten yards away from me looking on in horror of the fact that I was holding the trigger to a dozen explosives with my arm slowly leaking out all the blood in my body. It was so surreal just standing there, to terrified to even blink. I knew what Shane needed to do, but I also knew he thought he wasn't fast enough. I didn't care, as long as he got me out of Zachary's crosshairs we would be able to move fast enough to get away. I could hold on for as long as I needed to in order to save them. To save him.

And then I was warm again for the briefest of seconds before my entire vision went spinning out of control. I only caught flashes of trees, a rock, sky, house, water, wall, road, flower, man, darkness, and then all I could see was green. Everything was green as my head kept spinning around in circle's. Green, green swirls.

_Sera! _Oh, what a nice voice, but why did he have to yell?

"Sera, I know it was a lot, babe, but don't pass out on me yet. You've got to let go of the trigger so I can get us back. Sera, let go!" Shane's voice sounded strange. Not so strong or sure. More like he was on the brink of hysterics actually. I fought to make the world stay in one place so I could actually see his face and slowly started to realize I was already looking into his eyes.

I uncurled my hand and let the trigger finally drop to the ground, "You're not going to do that again are you?" I managed to rasp out.

"I'm sorry, babe, but you won't feel a thing if you close your eyes and I'll try to go slower alright?" He soothed and all I could do was nod my head before he picked me up. I tucked my head under his chin and squeezed my eyes shut. Flying at breakneck speeds I could handle no problem, but teleporting at nearly the speed of light was pushing my capacity to stay conscious a little too far. No wonder a hit on the head doesn't faze him. He was used to disorienting headaches.

I only felt the change in temperature and the feel of the sun or shadows on my skin as he teleported from location to location, but other than that I wouldn't have known we had arrived back at our new home if Lily's voice didn't break me out of my safe cocoon. I opened my eyes just far enough to make out her small profile before Shane laid me down on the wooden bench. He bent over my head and brush his hand across my cheek.

"I'll be back," he promised.

_I'll be here_

_Shane's Pov_

It was time to end this once and for all. Too many times Zachary's destroyed her life. Too many times he'd gotten away. I watched Sera's beautiful eyes drift shut as Dr. Cullen knelt beside her and started putting pressure on her wound. Seth crouched on her other side helping him move her so that the doctor could get to her wing and I took my chance to slowly stand from my position above her head and start back towards the forest. Edward was there before I could register he had even moved and I glared at him.

_Get out of my way, _I thought at him.

"You're really going to go after him and take the chance of getting yourself killed? What do you think will happen to her when she wakes up and finds you're not holding her hand?" He accused me in a voice like cracking ice.

I didn't even bother to answer him. My mind was set. I had a lot of practice moments before and it didn't take that much to simply teleport across the yard and then miles ahead into the forest, faster than I had ever gone before. I had also found out that I could teleport to places I wasn't looking at. All I had to do was feel and see the destination in my mind ahead of time and I was there. I was beginning to wonder if I wanted to go to Hawaii if I could be there in a split second, but I had bigger issues to take care of at the moment and I scanned the forest around me from the place Zachary had chosen for his final showdown.

I wasn't surprised when he found me first. In fact, I was counting on it.

"You know, I'm beginning to think I'm going to have to settle for taking all of you out one by one," his cajoling voice called out as he appeared from behind the tree he had been leaning on. I stood my ground, my hands balled into fists as I tried to keep myself from lunging at him too soon. I was still in my hybrid form and I bared my fangs in a predatory warning. One small chance for him to turn away.

"Ahaha, come on now. Is that supposed to scare me, boy? Why don't I show you what a real monster looks like?" He suggested right before he transformed into his wolf form, claws elongating, teeth sharpening, his bones snapped as his arms and legs became more useful for running on four legs rather than two.

I still didn't move a muscle. He thought he was about to get a fight from me, but I wasn't about to waste my energy and blood on a few good punches. It didn't take him long to figure out I wasn't going to be the one to start this thing and he ran at me full speed. I waited until the very second he was about to hit me before reaching out so that my hands connected with his arms first. I had already moved us ten miles before the rest of his body slammed into mine. It was perfect timing. I twisted hard to get out of his grip as we both started plummeting as gravity pulled us down. Little did Zachary know there wasn't any ground below us and I took a moment to watch as he plunged into the ocean before zipping back to dry land.

I crumpled to my knees, exhausted and a little winded at the tackle he managed to give. I raised my eyes to scan the horizon along the water and hoped it was far enough out he wouldn't be able to swim back. Especially with a dose of venom running through his veins now.

I knew this act could potentially throw a shadow over my relationship with Sera and her family but I would do it again in a heartbeat. No way was I going to let her suffer one more moment believing Zachary could once again appear out of nowhere. I wouldn't let her live a life of paranoia or frightened dreams. Even if it meant losing her. She was mine now and I would do anything to protect her and the one's she loved.

I took a deep breath, preparing myself for one more journey home. Hopefully, I'd make it in time to be there when she woke up.

_Sera's Pov_

I knew I was waking up when the light slowly started turning the inside of my eyes red instead of the cooler darkness I had been floating in. I felt someone brush their hand across my forehead and opened my eyes. I was lying on a bed with a white canopy above me. A window must have been open because I could feel a breeze and see the light fabric ripple back and forth. My father sat beside me. For some reason, seeing my father didn't seem all that surprising. Zachary was gone now so why should any of us still suffer. Not logical, since I couldn't remember exactly why I thought Zachary was gone forever but it seemed right to me in this nice place. I would have to ask Alice why she painted everything white.

I smiled at him, "Nice to see you awake, sleepy head."

He laughed and his eyes lit up as he continued to watch me, "How are you feeling?"

I took a moment to check. Nothing seemed to ache or burn when I moved anything and I experimented by sitting up and resting against the headboard, "Better, I guess."

"That's not exactly what I meant," he chided and for some reason I knew it too, but I wasn't about to give in without having him ask me straight out. Too bad he knew it.

"Will you be happy with your life now, Sera? Now that you know what you want?" He specified for me.

I thought about all the people in my life. The Pack, who's loyalty and warmth brought us safety. The Cullen's, who's strength and security brought us shelter. Seth, who unfailingly always stood beside me. Tyler and Lily, who brought joy to the world. And Shane, who's love brought me peace of mind and happiness.

I looked at my father and knew my face said it all. He smiled at me again and I finally detected a small hint of sadness behind his dark eyes. I frowned, puzzled.

"What is it?" I asked but before he could answer a noise must have caught his attention because he swiveled around to look behind him. I tried to look over his shoulder but I couldn't see anything behind all of the light coming from the door. I squinted, trying to make the figure out and as it drew closer I started to get a panicked feeling in the pit of my stomach. Wait, why was there so much light? She couldn't be real, could she?

I knew my father was smiling again as my mother finally appeared clearly beside him. She was even more beautiful than I remembered seeing on that tv screen in the hotel room or from my clouded memories. She radiated warmth and this gold light. I felt like crying and laughing all at the same time. I knew I was dreaming. I had to be. My mother was dead and my father was still in a coma, but I couldn't help feeling like this was so very real as she cupped my face in her hands.

"Hello, darling. My little angel," she whispered, her voice so soft, caressing.

"Mom?" I cried.

"Shhh, I know we never got enough time to be together. I love you and I will always love you. Your father will always love you…but it's time for you to live your own life now, not his," she explained lovingly and it took me too long to understand what she meant by that.

My father got up and took my mother's hand, "Stay strong, Seraphina. I love you," he told me as they both turned to leave, their hands entwined once again.

"Wait!" I screamed at them, jumping off the bed and into their arms. It was a brief but tight embrace and I knew I was trying very hard to get the words past the incoherent sobs racking my body.

"I…love…you!"

I opened my eyes and instead found myself staring up into a set of emerald orbs. I was lying down again, this time in a different room. More solid than the last one I remembered…and Shane was holding my hand.

Instead of feeling that sorrow and longing for my parents I had been crying over what seemed like seconds before, I was suddenly calm. So calm I felt like I was numb. I couldn't change the past. I couldn't change what was out of my power. Shane was watching me with a sympathetic face. He already knew.

"My father is dead, isn't he?" I asked.

He nodded his head, "I'm sorry," he whispered, anguish in his eyes for me and I oddly felt like explaining to him why I didn't break down, again.

"My father didn't deserve to live on in misery, torn from the only one who could make him truly happy," I told him, "Thank you for being here with me."

"I'll always be here. For as long as you want me," he promised.

I started envisioning my life from now on. Living with him, watching Lily and Tyler grow up and go their own ways, being happy with my little corner of the world, maybe even having a family of my own. I found I liked this future of mine very much and I gave Shane a smile full of hope and love.

Life would be full of obstacles and problems, but I would always get through them. Maybe not in the ways that I plan, but I would get through them nonetheless with Shane by my side and a self confidence that nothing could shatter.

I was Seraphina Amber Ride and I was going to live my life the way I wanted.

Starting now.

_The End of Seraphina's Song _(which, by the way, I think the perfect theme song for her would be 'Stand in the Rain' by Superchic. I didn't want to just write the lyrics. Songs are not meant to be felt through reading but through listening and the only way to truly grasp the essence of this song is by going to you tube and finding it J)

I want to thank everyone who took the time to read my whim of a story and for all of my reviewers. I know this is just some author's note at the end of her story but it really means a lot to me. Writing is part of who I am, even when it isn't my best and I appreciate the kindness those of you who handled this with care and enthusiasm.


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